Torn Wings
by Kittymui
Summary: An angel from the moon descended to Earth out of curiosity, but who could have known that the same trait would take away her ability to go back? SessxKag
1. Prologue

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hi everybody! Yeah I'm back again! For you, it might have been several months, but for me it was only one day, because I started writing this story the next day I finished my previous one (Destiny). Anyhow, I'm glad to be back, although I'm still quite busy with school and stuff. And like always I'll tell you some things you need to know first before reading this story :).

First of all, this story takes place in an unknown period that has a bit of the Feudal Age in the series (I guess I'll just have to tell you to use your fantasy hehe), but it's still an Alternative Universe because our main character isn't from the future. From where then? Well just read and find out :).

Second of all, this story is going to be based on a small Chinese myth (or fairytale, whatever you want to call it) and depending on my mood I'll see if I'll deviate from the original storyline.

Furthermore, this is and will stay a Sess/Kag fic. I don't know if other characters would also appear in the story because if there's something that I'm not good at...it's planning in advance which minor characters I shall use or need. I shall let my inspiration carry me to wherever that will be.  
For the curious ones among you, I can tell you that this will not be a very long story compared to my previous ones. One reason is because the plot is not as complicated as "Destiny" or "An Elves' Child", another reason is because I can't wait to start my next story, which is still a secret until the final chapter of this story is up hehe :).

If you want me to notify you whenever I update (for those who can't use the "Author Alert" function) just tell me per review. And you're free to ask me questions or tell me about grammar mistakes :). Enough of my endless chatter, I will start this story with a prologue and try to intrigue you all with this fairytale of mine.

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
-- --: locations  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
Capslocked words: noises

* * *

**Torn Wings**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Prologue**

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful kingdom on the moon called Celes. The inhabitants of Celes didn't possess any magical powers though. They were just as normal as their counterparts who lived on the planet called Earth.

Naturally, the kingdom had a ruler and his name was Kronos. Together with his beautiful queen Moira, he has ruled over Celes for many many years now. They both resided in a large castle, which was located at the center of a huge, but shallow crater.

Unlike the people they ruled over, the pair was granted special abilities. Kronos and several imperial guards were given the power to fight away intruders of this kingdom and Moira was given the ability to heal. The queen was also given a beautiful pair of wings, which she could use to travel to and from Earth.

The king and queen had seven lovely daughters. Like their mother, they also had wings. Each one of them brought prosperity to Celes as they were born. The last one however brought nothing but headache to the king, as she was the most rebellious and disobedient one.

Because Kronos and Moira were too busy ruling their kingdom, the responsibility for taking care of the youngest princess was given to the eldest one, who was also the wisest of them all.

In this small fairytale, I will tell you about the seventh daughter of Kronos and Moira and how fate changed her whole life.

-.-.-.-.-"Oh I can't wait!! I can't wait!!" cheered the happy girl as she danced in the courtyard of the white castle.

The courtyard wasn't very pretty to look at since there were only white marble pieces of art and seats. There were only several white flowers blooming near the walls and the rest of it was paved with gray tiles. These flowers, which were called Moonflowers, were the only "nature" that's growing on this planet. It was a simple green and gray stem propping 6 thin white flower petals and almost the whole planet is filled with them. The strangest thing about this tiny little piece of nature is that it doesn't need water to survive, only the warmth of the sun once in a while. But enough about this flower, let's turn our attention back to the dancing girl who appears to be very happy about something.

Her beautiful raven black locks danced along as she jumped up and down, and so did her silver blue dress. The garment was opaque at her upper and lower body but had long sleeves that were slightly transparent. It had a wide U-shaped neckline and was made of the softest fabric you could ever imagine.

The young princess continued to dance bare-feet as her navy-blue eyes were fixed on a certain planet that hung in the dark starry sky.

Unlike any other planets, this one was green and blue at different places and there were also fuzzy white feathery things covering some spots of the planet that disappeared and appeared from hour to hour [AN: in case you don't know...they're clouds hehehe :).]. It was the planet called Earth.

The moon was a totally different place; it was cool and most of the time pretty drafty. Edible things only grew inside the castle walls, under the queen's influence. Since water was a crucial element to grow crops, and since it was also something that was extremely rare on the moon, the queen was given the responsibility to take her daughters with her to the Earth and bring back barrels filled with water several times a year. But the condition, which held for the winged daughters, was that they had to be full-fledged before they were allowed to go to Earth together with their mother.

And today, was the day that the youngest daughter of the king and queen became full-fledged, as it was her 20th birthday. Tonight will be her first time to Earth along with her sisters and mother, and that was why she was so happy and dancing in the castle's courtyard.

"I can't wait!!" she continued with a smile on her face that reached her eyes.

"Kagome, can you please calm down a bit?" a woman's voice spoke from the main entrance of the castle.

Kagome stopped jumping and turned to the voice.

It was her eldest sister that told her to calm down. She was seven years older than Kagome and much wiser than she was. Her long wavy black hair fluctuated a little as she descended the stone steps and walked towards the young princess. She was wearing a long white silvery robe that had a V-shaped neckline and long wide sleeves.

"Kikyou onee-sama!" Kagome cheered as she ran to her dear sister with her navy blue orbs locked on the pair of dark gray ones.

Kikyou smiled. "Now tell me, why is my sweet little sister dancing bare-feet in our courtyard?" she asked.

"It's my 20th birthday today! Today, I'm officially full-fledged, so I can go to Earth together with Kikyou onee-sama and all other sisters," the young princess replied.

The smile on Kikyou's face dropped a little but she forced it up again before her youngest sister could notice it. "I'm sorry Kagome, I'm afraid I won't be able to go with you..." she replied sadly.

The young princess frowned. "Why?"

"That's because I'm getting married soon..." she replied.

"Ehh?!! Hontou???" Kagome reacted surprised but then realized that her eldest sister wasn't smiling at all and quickly dropped her smile as well. "Onee-sama...why do you look so sad...?"

Kikyou averted her gaze. "It's father who had decided the engagement...not me..."

Kagome raised a brow, as she didn't quite understood what her sister meant, but she was quickly answered with a gentle pat on her head.

"You will understand it someday..." she smiled. "You better get ready or mother and your sisters will depart without you." With that said, she turned and walked back into the castle.

With a confused expression on her face, Kagome watched how her sister disappeared behind the main entrance, but suddenly snapped back into reality as she recalled her words before she left. "Shimatta!!" she gasped and immediately hurried back into the castle on her bare feet.

-.-.-.-.- later -.-.-.-.-Kagome dashed out of her chamber and quickly made her way towards the courtyard again.

The young princess was now dressed in a thin and very skin-revealing azure-colored garment that resembled the clothing of the Ancients Greeks. It looked like two loose cloths that were attached to each other by iron rings at her shoulders and at both sides of her waist. The garment had a wide neck-opening and two long wide sleeves. At her back, the garment created a space for her wings by dividing the cloth into an upper part right below her neck and lower part. And the lower-body part looked like a loose skirt that reached her knees. Throughout the entire clothe, there were graceful folds made in the fabric, creating a lovely cascading surface. At her feet, Kagome wore a pair of brown sandals that reached halfway up to her knees.

Without second though, she flung open the doors of the main entrance and descended the stone steps with one high leap. Kagome curled her knees a bit as she made contact with the tiles again and spread out her arms just as though she had finished a somersault in an acrobatic contest.

"Kagome! You're late!!"

Kagome raised her head as she straightened herself up. It was the second to eldest sister who spoke. She and the rest of her siblings were standing perfectly in line next to each other from the eldest on the far left to the youngest on the far right.

From left to right, their names were Kururo, Lily, Heela, Tammy and Fiore, respectively dressed in brown, green, yellow, red and black. All of them were wearing the same kind of outfit like Kagome herself. Behind her five siblings stood her mother, queen Moira. Beautiful long brown curls framed her long face as her blue eyes were fixed on Kagome. She was dressed in a long-sleeved robe made of golden fabric that was long enough to cover her feet.

"Are you ready my dear?" she asked with a feathery light voice.

Despite Kagome's rebellious and disobedient behavior, the queen still thought of her as her favorite daughter. Probably because she's the youngest but mostly because she possessed a very unique power.

Unlike her other daughters, who either possessed the ability to fight (from their father) or the power to heal (from herself), Kagome possessed them both. Or better said, a combination of it, which was the ability to purify.

Although she hadn't told Kagome about her unusual ability yet, she's pretty sure that it will develop in its natural way. Although the king only had negative expectations from the youngest princess because of her immature and naive character, the queen had high hopes for her to become the most powerful of the seven daughters.

"Hai!!" Kagome replied cheerfully, earning another smile from her mother.

"All right, let's begin sprouting our wings first," Moira decided as she clasped her hands together at her chest and closer her eyes.

The young princess quickly stood in line with the other princesses and followed her mother's example.

In a flash, seven beautiful pairs of white feathery wings appeared on the queen's and the six princesses' backs. Naturally, the pair on Moira's back was slightly bigger and sturdier than those of her daughters.

"Everybody set?" she asked, scanning her daughters' wings one by one.

"Haaaai!!" the six girls replied in harmony.

Moira smiled and spread out her wings. "Then let's go!"

With that, she flapped her wings once and defied gravity within seconds.

The princesses followed their mother's example one by one to avoid collisions and soon, all of them were floating in the air above the courtyard.

Queen Moira flew to Kagome's side. "This will be your first time to Earth so you should follow right behind me and not wander off on your own, okay?"

Kagome nodded in reply.

"Good, here we go then!" her mother smiled and sped up to the sky together with her five sisters at her tail. And she followed right behind them, just as she was told.

-- Earth --

It was past midnight when the group arrived on the planet they called Earth. As most organisms were asleep at this time of the day, they didn't have to worry about being discovered by the ones they called 'humans'. But they still had to be alert for another living being that inhabited this Earth, the ones they refer to as 'youkai'.

The queen told them that youkai were vicious monsters that wouldn't hesitate to dig their sharp claws into their flesh. Although humans were much more innocent compared with youkai, there were still bad ones that could cause them harm.

All with all, the golden law of the winged ones stated to avoid any contact with the ones on Earth and all went well up till now since most of the seven daughters were obedient.

But who would have thought that this golden law, which had worked for more than 100 years now, would be overthrown by a tiny innocent trait called 'curiosity'?

-.-.-.-.-Kagome widened her eyes and dropped her jaw when they landed in an open area of a forest near a large lake.

"S-sugoi..." she gasped while looking around her. For the first time in her life, she saw what nature was like with her own eyes.

Distant noises made by animals of the night echoed in her ears like an orchestra. Gentle breezed graced past her soft cheeks, carrying the scent of water and grass with it. Kagome felt like a blind and deaf child who's eyes and ears had just opened for the very first time.

As her older siblings ran pass her into the pond to do what they came here for, she just stood there at the bank and inhaled a deep breath. _'This is Earth...'_ she thought dreamily. She snapped out of it when she heard Moira's voice calling her.

"Kagome? Why aren't you helping your sisters?"

She turned to the queen. "Oh...right..." And retracted her wings before slowly stepping into the water.

_'Cold...'_ she winced inside and waited until she got used to the temperature before walking deeper into the lake. Kagome took an empty barrel and started to scoop water into it. But it didn't take long before her attention was drawn again by something else.

"I'm going to scout and secure our environment, you girls just continue to fill the barrels and wait for my return, understand?" queen Moira stated as she remained at the dry ground.

"Hai!" the princesses acknowledged before turning to their barrels again.

After hearing that, the queen turned and disappeared into the trees. Little did she notice that all except one of her daughters had given her an answer of acknowledgment.

As the winged ones continue to gather water from the lake, they didn't realized that one of them had started to drift away from the group.

Kagome had stopped scooping up water the moment she noticed some strange light on the water-surface. When she lifted up her gaze, she realized it was the reflection of a tiny light that floated above the water. _'What could it be...?'_ she thought puzzled and began to follow the light as it floated away from the water and deeper into the forest.

Completely forgetting what she had come to Earth for in the first place, Kagome continued to pursue the floating light. Eventually, she caught up with it and without second thought; she encaged it between her hands. "Gotcha!" she giggled.

Slowly, she created a small opening to peek at the mysterious object she captured. But as soon as the opening was big enough for her to look inside, the strange floating light almost immediately escaped its prison.

Kagome quickly tried to capture it again but stopped when her eyes fell on something more intriguing than the floating light.

-.-.-.-.-Meanwhile, queen Moira had returned to the lake from her safety patrol. "Are you all finished with filling the barrels?" she inquired as she approached the lake.

All of the winged princesses nodded in reply as they sprouted their wings at the same time.

"Good, let's leave," the queen nodded approvingly and sprouted her wings too.

The princesses put both their hands on each side of the barrels and flapped their white wings several times. Within seconds, the group had broken contact with the earth and disappeared into the sky.

-.-.-.-.- later -.-.-.-.-A smile appeared on Moira's face when she saw the king standing in the middle of the courtyard, apparently waiting for their safe return.

The king was wearing a grand dark-red robe with shimmering crystals here and there on its surface. Short black curls framed his face as his navy blue eyes were locked on the blue ones of his queen.

"Okaeri," he smiled as he watched his family silently land on the paved floor in front of him. "You've done a great job."

"Tadaima!!" the princesses cried happily and exhausted at the same time as they retracted their wings.

"My dear, why are you out here? Weren't you busy with the wedding?" the queen asked surprised.

Kronos raised his hand and stroked her cheek. "It's our sweet daughter's first time to Earth, surely I would want to hear how she had behaved and what she thought of it," he replied with a smile.

The queen smiled back. "Don't worry, she's done a great job!' she replied, turning to her daughters. "Didn't you, Kagome?"

"Kagome?" she called out again when she received no reply.

The smile on the queen's face dropped as she scanned her daughters one by one. "One...two...three...four...five..." she counted aloud.

"Oh no..." she gasped wide-eyed.

* * *

I hope you all liked this prologue. It's been a while again, so it took me some time to type it in my computer :). Please tell me what you think of it by a review and do look forward to the next chapter ne? 

**Next chapter: **Living fairytale

-.-.-.-.-  
He raised his gaze to the sky and was surprised to witness seven thin stripes of light falling down from the bright crescent moon.

To him, these strange lights meant more like uninvited visitors of his property than any wish-fulfilling superstition.

"Jaken," he ordered with a stern voice. "Guard the castle."  
-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:  
onee-sama: ** big sister  
**hontou??:** really??  
**shimatta:** oh shit/oops  
**hai:** yes  
**sugoi:** amazing  
**okaeri:** welcome back  
**tadaima:** I'm home

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**mousee: **They there, you really should have given me your email-address, then you wouldn't have to wait until June for the answer to your question :). Anyhow, here's the site where you can read Inuyasha manga: www . wot-club . org . uk / Inuyasha / (without the spaces). Thanks for reviewing my previous story, I'm glad you loved it :)

Lots of greets  
Kittymui

Posted: 30 May 2004  
Last Edited: 30 May 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	2. Living Fairytale

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hi everybody! Please enjoy this new installment! But I can't update very frequently anymore since it's getting busier each week. I'll try to update within 10 days but I can't promise anything, I'm really sorry about that.

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts   
-- --: locations   
"...": spoken words   
-.-.-.-.-: time gap   
=Capslocked words= : noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**

-by Kittymui-  
  
**Living Fairytale**

A mix of black and a tint of blue painted the skies as the Lord of the Western Lands gazed upon his property from the balcony of his large gray castle.

Two pairs of dark purple stripes graced his cheeks below his gold-amber eyes as silvery white locks framed his stoic face. His pointy ears twitched and a brow rose when an unknown presence caught the periphery area of his eyes.

He raised his gaze to the sky and was surprised to witness seven thin stripes of light falling down from the bright crescent moon.

Normal beings would think those were pieces of the moon falling down to Earth, a phenomenon he remembered to be known as shooting stars. Fragments that could grant any wishes that were made upon them before they had lost all of their illuminating powers, which visible to the eyes of flesh.

Humans were truly foolish indeed. He thought with an invisible amusement.

To him, these strange lights meant more like uninvited visitors of his property than any wish-fulfilling superstition.

"Jaken," he ordered with a stern voice.

The door to the balcony immediately opened, revealing a short skinny green toad-like person. He was wearing a dark-gray cloak and a small black hat. In his small hands he was holding a long wooden staff with two heads propped on it. "H-hai milord?" he asked meekly.

"Guard the castle," was his lord's short command.

Before the servant could ask why, the silver-haired demon already set off to the sky on his misty cloud.

-.-.-.-.-

_'It should be around here' _he thought as he scanned the surroundings below him.

After he had decided that it would be better to approach on foot to remain undetected, he dismissed the cloud and landed softly on the grass.

Shortly after that, he felt the same strange feeling again like he had when he saw the stripes of light. When he raised his gaze up to the sky, several stripes of light crossed his vision again in a short flash. So short that even the keen eyes of the dogdemon couldn't distinguish the identity of the lights.

Normally, he wouldn't even bother to go on patrol in his own lands when the intruders left this quick and didn't leave any ominous things behind. But he had become alert when he realized there were only six stripes of light leaving this planet for wherever they came from. _'A leftover huh?'_ he thought annoyed.

He immediately snapped back into reality when a soft noise caught his sensitive ears coming from deeper within the forest.

_'There's no way that this Sesshoumaru will allow any unwanted guests to stay in his lands.'_ he thought determined and started to walk into the direction of the noise.

-.-.-.-.-

The longer he walked, the clearer the sound became.

At a certain point, the silver-haired dogdemon could clearly conclude that it was a girlish giggle that he had heard, mixed with the sound of splashing water in the background.

_'A water elf?'_ he hypothesized.

If it was so, he should be careful. Those cursed creatures of the water were well-known of their ability to create illusions with their voices and lure men into oblivion with their blinding beauty, or so the folklore stated.

_'Hmpf...'_ Sesshoumaru smirked in his mind. _'This Sesshoumaru will never admit the existence of such low creature from a myth...even if they really existed, they would never succeed in fooling me.'_

With his body ready to attack, he slowly approached the small clearing. He pushed away a branch and had a perfect view of a small lake that had a pillar-like stone spring at the center and old willow looming silently of the waters.

=giggle=

Sesshoumaru's eyes darted around to search for the water creature and stopped when had found the intruder.

But it wasn't a water elf.

It was a girl with long raven-black hair and navy blue eyes, dressed in some garment he had never seen before. She was sitting on a large rock that stood half above the water-surface near the willow.

By her appearance, he thought she was human, but her scent proved otherwise.

If the girl were indeed a human, she would be having the most unique scent he had ever smelt before. It was as though she was Mother Nature in person, as she smelled like the first leaves of spring and untainted earth.

He held in his breath when the girl suddenly spoke with a feathery like voice.

"You are indeed very beautiful," she said. "And your wings too."

It took Sesshoumaru several seconds to realize that she was in fact talking to a firefly that was resting and glowing at the center of her palm.

"But my wings are much bigger and they aren't transparent like yours. Do you want to see them?" the girl asked.

The firefly flew away from her palm and landed on a nearby branch of the old willow.

The girl stood up on the rock and stretched out her arms in front of her. "All right! Now watch!" she said and closed her eyes. In one swift motion, she bent her elbows and moved her hands to her chest.

At that very moment, the silver-haired dogdemon thought his eyes were deceiving him.

As soon as the girl's hands touched her chest, two large white feathery wings sprouted from her back.

_'A winged human...?!!'_ Sesshoumaru thought disbelievingly. His thoughts were cut off when short pants caught his attention.

The winged girl was panting and several shimmering drops of sweatdrops could be seen on her forehead.

"Unlike you...I'm still just a beginner...it takes a lot of energy to summon these wings and fly..." she explained, broken in pants. "And I've already used up almost all of my strength to get here..."

Sesshoumaru frowned. _'To get here? With her wings? From where...?'_ he mused, recalling the seven stripes of light falling from the sky. He snapped out of it when he heard her speak again.

"Who's there???"

Almost immediately, the girl retracted her wings and turned to a certain direction.

For a second, Sesshoumaru almost thought the girl had discovered his presence, but was soon reassured when he heard the sound of rustling leaves nearby.

He sniffed the air and scowled. _'How careless of me not to realized that some low-life creature was practically standing next to me...'_ he scolded himself as his eyes narrowed on the girl. _'I must leave here before she bewitches me even more...'_ he decided, but then uncontrollably let out a soft 'hmpf' as he rejected the thought. _'As if she's capable of bewitching I, Sesshoumaru, the great Lord of the Western Lands...'_   
Satisfied with that conclusion, the demonlord silently backed away and disappeared into the shadows of the forest.

-.-.-.-.-

"Who's there??" she asked again, this time not sure how many strangers there were, since she swore she had clearly heard a soft 'hmpf' from within the shadows next to where the sound of rustling leaves came from.

Not long after she had fired the question, a figure came out of the bushes into the moonlight.

Kagome took several steps backwards and gave the stranger a puzzled look.

"Don't be afraid, I'm not going to hurt you..." the stranger smiled.

It was a middle-aged man with short brown curls and dark-brown eyes. He was wearing a worn-off brown sleeveless tunic and a pair of shorts that reached just above his knees. The sound of his leather sandals shuffling over the grass could be heard as he took several steps into her direction. "I won't hurt you," he repeated as he reached out a hand to Kagome.

For a moment, Kagome hesitated whether she should believe the stranger or not. _'This is an Earthling...?'_ she wondered. And once again, her curiosity carried her away. "Y-you...really won't hurt me...?" she asked with a soft and unsure voice.

The man chuckled. "Of course not! Who would be able to hurt such a divine being like you?" he said. "I know you must be an angel sent from the heavens, won't you please help me?"

"Help you?" Kagome asked surprised. She couldn't help but feel flattered by the Earthling's words.

"Yes," he nodded. "My brother is extremely sick. I've prayed many months for someone to save him."

"And after I saw your beautiful wings, I knew my prayers had finally reached the great heavens. I knew you had to be the one who can save my dear brother," he continued as sadness was written all over his face. "So please, oh divine angel of the great heavens. Please save my brother!!"

Kagome hesitated again. _'Should I help him? If I don't, his brother could die...it won't hurt to help right?'_ she asked herself as she looked at the man, who was on the verge of bursting into tears.

"All right, I'll help you," she agreed with a sincere smile. Although she wasn't quite sure how she was going to be of any help, but she had the feeling that she'll be able to do something once she gets there.

"Oh many thanks!" the man cried relieved. "Please...it's this way! There's no time to lose!"

With that, the man turned around and ran away.

And Kagome, who didn't even doubt the credibility of the stranger's story for one minute, followed the man out of the small clearing.

* * *

Uh oh...this doesn't sound very good in combination with the summary of this story huh? Please look forward to the next chapter, which I don't know when I would be able to update. But I'll try to update as soon as possible! And sorry for the short chapter...but lately I can't seem to manage to write long chapters, especially when I'm this busy with school, sorry!! 

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**Next chapter: **Fateful Meeting

-.-.-.-.-

"We're very sorry to have intruded this place without permission but if you could be kind enough to listen"

"Hmpf," the demonlord but her off nonchalantly and turned to leave.

"Please listen to me. We've only come here to find a royal family member. We believe she is still on this planet and around here somewhere."

_'Aid a group of intruders?' _he thought to himself as he cracked his knuckles. (...) _'When they place their first step on my property again, I'll be sure to rip each and every single of them apart.'_

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:  
hai: **yes**  
inuyoukai: **dogdemon

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**osuwariIYK: **Thanks! I'm glad you haven't forgotten about me.

**watergoddesskasey: **Thank you very much :).

**lily1121: **I'll try to update as soon as possible. I'm glad you liked it.

**Rhexi: **Wow thanks for reviewing again!! I'm so happy to hear you liked it!

**Kuramasgirl556:** Thanks! I'll check up your stories whenever I have time :).

**Guardian-of-the-night: **I've put you in my mailinglist :). Thanks for your compliments!

**death is only the beginning: **Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you love so far (although it has only been a prologue hehe)

**starlight-crazy: **Wow! Thanks for reading An Elves' Child, I'm very happy to know it motivated you to read this one.

**waterdragonmaster: **Thanks for waiting, hope you liked this one too!

**Shadow-Demon14: **I'm so happy to know that you liked one of my previous stories. Your compliments are so encouraging :)!

**violet:** Hahaha, I think you've gotten in more suspense after reading this chapter didn't you. I'll try to update as soon as possible!

**burntbanana: **Nice long review, thanks!! After I reread my chapter, I find that you are right about Kagome being a bit childish, but then again, she has always been under protection of her nice big sis (Kikyou) and had never seen the true (real and cruel) world before...she's just naive I guess. But don't worry, her character will definitely change...I'm trying to keep Sesshoumaru as original as possible by the way hehe. I think your first question has been answered after reading this chapter. For your second question...I think this story is going to be around 20 (short) chapters, of not shorter. And yeah, I'm still searching for a nice role to put Inuyasha in the story :).

**Dorie:** Thanks, I'll try!

**CryingDeath: **Wow! Thank you very much!!

**Kyia:** Heyyy, haven't heard of you in a long while now, how is everything going (except for being hectic because of the whole moving stuff). Thanks for reviewing!!

**Inukamisashi: **Oehh you want to know more about my next story huh? Hahaha sorry but I'm not revealing anything about it until I've reached the last chapter of this story, hope you'll understand :). Thanks for reviewing!

Posted: 4 June 2004  
Last Edited: 4 June 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	3. Fateful Meeting

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Nothing much to say really...euhm have fun reading? The message is still the same, I'll try to update within 10 days :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts   
-- --: locations   
"...": spoken words   
-.-.-.-.-: time gap   
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**

  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Fateful meeting**

An unsatisfied look could be seen on Sesshoumaru's face as he looked at the orange-colored sky, which was signaling the departure of the sun.

It has been several days already since he had seen the winged girl by the pond and he had almost succeeded in digesting what he saw that night as the result of a tiresome day.

Although it was quite ridiculous, since a full-blooded youkai seldom got tired. But it was at least more acceptable than witnessing a creature from a fairytale.

Well, that was until he witnessed several stripes of light again this morning. And all of them headed towards the same spot where the seven stripes of light had landed a couple of days ago. One of them departed this afternoon, only to bring several more intruders with it, much to his anger.

_'This has gone on long enough...'_ he decided inwardly as he followed the light with his eyes until it disappeared towards the location mentioned earlier. "Jaken," he called for his servant.

And immediately came the green wrinkled frog-youkai. "Hai? Sesshoumaru-sama?" he asked with a deep bow.

"Guard the castle," was his short command before he jumped off the balcony into the forest.

-- Deep in the forest --

Sesshoumaru raised a brow as he walked closer to the spot where he believed the lights had landed. He had only expected several of them, yet there were in fact about 13 of them.

Six women and seven men. They were all standing in a small open area of the forest. All of them had a serious expression on their faces.

The women were all wearing the same kind of rich Greek outfit. It reminded Sesshoumaru of the one he saw at the pond back then so he concluded that the seven of them were somehow related. Which leaded to another conclusion, namely that the six of them probably had wings as well.

_'The men don't have that ability huh?'_ he concluded as he recalled only to have seen several stripes of light descending from the sky. _'They're probably guard of wherever they came from...'_ he thought as he scanned them from head to toe.

Three of the men were wearing light blue, steel armor that shielded their chests, backs and their lower bodies above their knees. They had shoulder, lower-arm and leg protectors of the same material and carried sword-like weapons around their waists.

The other four wore similar kind of armor. Only these ones were made of a far stronger material that emitted the color of silver and gold.

Sesshoumaru turned his attention to one of the women who suddenly started to speak. She was dressed in a white version of the Greek outfit.

"I'm glad you could come as soon as possible," she said with a haughty and firm voice. "I take that my sister had already informed you about the situation?"

"Hai!" the four silver-gold guards acknowledged with a bow and one of them spoke back. "Kururi-sama has told us about the missing princess and we got here as soon as we could with the help of the four princesses. We await your orders, Kikyou-sama."

The woman who was called Kikyou smiled. "I hadn't expected anything else from the Royal Guards."

"Any sign of the young princess yet?" the guard asked.

She shook her head. "I couldn't sense her presence, that's why I'm worried that something might've happened to her. I summoned you because it wouldn't be wise for me or my sisters to search around these lands."

"A wise choice as always," the guard smiled. "Don't worry, we won't rest until we've found our young princess."

Sesshoumaru scowled. _'This isn't good...'_ And he decided to step in before he had to find them one by one after they spread out to comb out his lands.

His first step into the open area immediately alerted them.

"Who's there?!" one of the blue guards asked.

Within seconds, the guards stood in between Sesshoumaru and the six princesses; with the four Royal Guards standing closest to the one named Kikyou.

Sesshoumaru slowly stepped into the light of the setting sun and stopped when his whole figure had left the shadows of the trees.

"Who the hell are you?!" the same blue guard demanded threateningly, and almost instantly receiving a deathglare from the silver-haired demonlord.

By his appearance, Kikyou knew he wasn't just a regular demon that dropped by out of curiosity and so she took a step forward. "You must be the lord of this area, am I right?"

Sesshoumaru didn't reply her question and shifted his gaze to her and back to the guard that had addressed him so disrespectfully.

_'I take that as a yes..._' Kikyou thought. "We're very sorry to have intruded this place without permission but if you could be kind enough to listen"

"Hmpf," the demonlord cut her off nonchalantly and turned to leave.

"How dare you act that rude towards Kikyou-sama!!" the bigmouthed guard said angrily and immediately unsheathed his sword. "Prepare to be punished!!" he cried and lunged forward to Sesshoumaru.

But before he was even within arm reach of the demonlord, he was abruptly stopped as he felt a strong, clawed hand grabbing his throat.

"Impudent fool..." growled Sesshoumaru as he began to tighten his grip.

"Stop! We didn't come here to cause any trouble!" Kikyou halted them. "Please listen to me. We've only come here to find a royal family member. We believe she is still on this planet and around here somewhere."

Without a word, Sesshoumaru released the guard's throat and turned his back to them. "Leave..." was his only response before walking away.

"We will leave once we've found our young princess!" the blue guard coughed. "So" he wanted to continue but was shushed by Kikyou as she held up her hand and stepped forward.

"I'm very sorry for my guard's behavior; but I do hope that you understand that it's only because he's concerned about my sister's safety, just like the rest of us," she explained. "I sincerely hope you could help us with finding my lost sister, since you know this area so well."

The demonlord pretended not to have listened and continued to walk away.

Kikyou frowned. _'My...isn't he rude...'_ she thought and decided to push her luck. "I'm afraid that my father would never stop sending people to your lands if his dear daughter is still missing. So the sooner we find her, the sooner we'll stop intruding your lands," she reasoned. "We will leave for now, but we will come back when the moon shares the same shape as tonight (a month) again. I hope you would be able to bring us good news by then."

With that said, she turned to her group. "Let's leave."

A gush of wind blew pass the demonlord and he stopped to turn around. Much to his surprise, the entire party had vanished, leaving an empty clearing behind.

He scowled._ 'Aid a group of intruders?'_ he thought to himself as he cracked his knuckles. _'Nobody can blackmail this Sesshoumaru into doing something. When they place their first step on my property again, I'll be sure to rip each and every single of them apart.'_

Content with this decision, Sesshoumaru turned and left the area.

-.-.-.-.-

On his way back, however, Sesshoumaru noticed something unusual.

A swarm of vulture-youkai circled in the sky above a certain area of the forest.

_'A corpse huh?'_ he thought inwardly. But there was something else that caught his attention.

Besides the scent of blood, there was another one lingering in the air that was somehow familiar to him. In a flash, the image of the strange winged girl appeared in the demonlord's mind.

_'Hmpf...so what if she is dead? She'll be a nice dinner for those despicable carrion eaters._' he retorted inwardly.

After he'd decided that there was no need for him to take a detour, he continued to walk into the direction of where he saw the flying creatures, as it was also the direction of his castle.

-.-

The scent of blood became stronger with every minute, and after a while, Sesshoumaru finally arrived at the area.

His expression became one filled with disgust as he saw the group of red-headed carrion vultures gathered at one spot and fighting each other for the best part of rotten meat.

As he continued his way through the area, the vultures almost immediately turned their attention to him. But when they found no interest coming from the demonlord, they quickly turned their backs to him again.

Just when Sesshoumaru was about to reach the shadows of the trees again, a weak and hoarse plead managed to reach his sensitive, pointed ears.

"H-help...me-e...s-some...body..."

Sesshoumaru abruptly stopped his steps and slowly turned to the vultures again.

Without much thinking, he formed a long whip with his index- and middle-finger and slashed it horizontally through the bunch of carrion eaters.

=SWIISHHHHH=

Some of the birds felt the incoming assault and managed to fly away just in time, others weren't so lucky and were slashed in two by the green, poisonous whip.

The surviving birds flew up to the sky and circled restlessly together with the others as they kept their red eyes locked on their prey.

But the demonlord didn't spare them even a glance and started to walk closer to the body on the grass.

It was a horrible scene; one you could never erase from someone's mind. The victim, who seemed to be a girl, was lying on her stomach with her arms and legs stretched out. Her face, which was lying to its side facing the demonlord, was covered by the girl's raven-colored hair. Her whole body was covered with blood...her own blood. There were blue and brown bruises visible around her wrists and ankles that resembled chain marks. And there were clear sign of struggle left behind throughout her entire body.

But much to Sesshoumaru's surprise, there seemed to be no clue indicating that the girl had been raped.

The scent coming from the body on the grass indeed resembled that of the girl he saw several days ago. But in order to be sure, the demonlord knelt down beside the girl and removed the hair that shielded her facial identity.

Although his expression remained stoic, he was in fact a bit surprised and shocked to find out that the girl in front of him, who's on the verge of dying, was indeed the cheerful and lively one he saw at the pond.

He slowly traced the main origin of the bleeding to the girl's back and stopped when he saw two thick parallel gashes.

Suddenly he remembered when he first saw her and the human who had seen her as well.

_'They torn off her wings...?' _he mused inwardly. _'Disgusting creatures...'_

He silently watched how the girl breathed in and out heavily through her dry mouth, as if she was still fighting for her own existence.

Slowly and carefully, and without giving it much thought, the demonlord placed his right hand around her right shoulder and gently turned her over, placing her onto his left arm.

After he'd made sure that his arm wasn't touching the critical injury on her back, he slipped his right arm underneath her knees and slowly lifted her up from the grass as he stood up again.

Ignoring the loud screeching of the vultures above, Sesshoumaru turned to leave. Taking the girl, who had become unconscious, with him in his arms.

* * *

Yeah! They finally meet, but under what circumstances...shivers. Please look forward to the next chapter!! 

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Cruel reality**

-.-.-.-.-  
Just when she was about to pull her hands to her chest again, a firm voice stopped her.

"It's no use, so stop trying."

"Who"

"Rest, you'll need it."  
-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**hai: **yes

-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**Shadow-Demon14:** Thanks!! Well, haven't really thought about it. I don't think Kagome can talk to every single animal she sees, but I think she kind of understands the meaning of its nonverbal behavior. Hmm am I becoming delusional? It makes sense...does it not?

**Defafaeth Mechqua: **Hahaha you didn't say much, but I take it that you enjoyed reading the previous chapter. Thanks for reviewing!

**GothicBlacre: **Thank you very much!!

**d2k3001: **Thanks! I'll try! (is this fast enough?)

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Thanks! If you want to hear about the original myth, I'll be happy to explain it :).

**burntbanana: **Hey there! Thanks for reviewing again! Do you know the fairytale that I'm basing this story on? It's so funny that you do :). Indeed the ending is very sad, but I'm still thinking about it hehehe. I guess you understand now why I've given this story the title "Torn wings" :). And about the king, don't worry, he and the entire party on the moon will be mentioned from time to time.

**osuwariIYK: **I'm so happy to hear that!!

**bad-girl4: **Thanks! I'll try to update within every 10 days!

**Fire Kitsune Goddess: **Thanks! I hope you're not too disappointed with how things happened to our main character.

**Inukamisashi: **Thanks!!

**Guest: **Thanks for your review! I hope you liked this chapter also.

-.-.-.-.

Posted: 13 June 2004  
Last Edited: 13 June 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	4. Cruel Reality

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hey everybody. I haven't exceeded the 10days-limit as I have promised so don't sue me!!

Anyhow, I'm afraid I cannot update until the 2nd of July. My sister has planned a barbeque-party on the 26th and my tests are taking place on the 28th and 29th of July...so...you see the problem? Not to mention that I have a pretty important deadline on the 2nd of July. I can't combine fanfiction and studying when the tests and deadline is right after the bbq-party. So for the sake of having fun on the day of the bbq-party, I'm studying very hard in advance.

In short, the next chapter won't be posted before the 2nd of July, I'm terribly sorry about that. But I still do hope you would enjoy reading this chapter :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts   
-- --: locations   
"...": spoken words   
-.-.-.-.-: time gap   
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Cruel Reality**

**Previously:**  
He silently watched how the girl breathed in and out heavily through her dry mouth, as if she was still fighting for her own existence.   
Slowly and carefully, and without giving it much thought, the demon lord placed his right hand around her right shoulder and gently turned her over, placing her onto his left arm.  
After he'd made sure that his arm wasn't touching the critical injury on her back, he slipped his right arm underneath her knees and slowly lifted her up from the grass as he stood up again.  
Ignoring the loud screeching of the vultures above, Sesshoumaru turned to leave. Taking the girl, who had become unconscious, with him in his arms.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

[DREAM SEQUENCE]

"It's this way, hurry!" the man said as he quickly continued his way through the forest.

"I'm right behind you!" Kagome responded as she kept up with his pace without much difficulty.

Suddenly, the both of them ran into a deep darkness and everything around them disappeared.

The man stopped abruptly and turned around to Kagome.

"W-what's wrong?" Kagome asked in pants, noticing the sudden change of expression on his face. He seemed to be smirking. "Took you long enough, onii-san." She heard him say.

Before she could even turn around to look, two strong arms already captured her around her wrists from behind.

"Gotcha!" an unfamiliar rough male's voice spoke.

"This is her, onii-san! We can pay off all our debts if we use her!" the man in front of Kagome laughed.

At that moment, Kagome finally realized what situation she had gotten herself into. "L-let me go!! H-help!!" she cried and began to struggle for her life.

Suddenly the hands that were holding her wrists turned into iron chains. When Kagome tried to move her feet, she found them to be chained as well.

In a flash, the two men stood before her again.

The middle-aged man with short curly brown hair and dark-brown eyes stood next to another one who appeared to be the 'onii-san' he mentioned. The other man had the same hair but darker eyes; he was dressed in a white sleeveless tunic instead of a brown one.

"W-what do you want with me? P-please...let me go..." she pleaded.

The younger brother stepped closer to her. "If you make your wings appear again, we promise we'll let you go," he said.

"Y-you promise...?" she asked with an unsure voice. Little did she notice that the older of the two had walked to stand behind her.

"If I sprout my wings once...would you really let me go?" she asked again.

The man in front of her nodded. "Of course we would!"

Kagome thought to herself for a moment. _'I guess...it wouldn't hurt to show them...besides...I'll be able to go home again once I do...'_

After deciding, she slowly stretched out her arms and closed her eyes. After taking a deep breath, she pulled her hands to her chest in one swift motion.

When she felt her wings on her back, she was immediately greeted with two loud gasps. But when she opened her eyes again, she realized that both men weren't standing in front of her anymore but behind her.

_'...Eh?'_ she thought alarmed when she heard them laugh.

Just when she was about to retract her white wings again, two strong arms got hold of them.

"Oh no you don't!" one of them spoke. It was the older of the two.

"W-what are you doing?! You promised you would let me go once I've shown you my wings!!" Kagome reasoned panicked.

"Oh we will let you go...AFTER we've done this..." the younger one replied.

Kagome froze when she heard the sound of something leaving its leather sheath and turned her head to its side to look over her shoulder. Her eyes widened when she saw a long edged shimmering iron blade in the younger brother's right-hand. "N-no..." she gasped with a terrified look on her face.

The man raised the blade up to the air with both his hands on its hilt. "Hold her tight, onii-san!" he said to the other man who stood outside of Kagome's vision.

Kagome struggled once again when she felt the grip on her wings tighten. _'No...this can't be happening!! I don't want this!! I want to go h' _ Her train of thoughts crashed when the sound of the swishing blade filled the darkness.

And the next things she knew was experiencing a tremendous tormenting pain that even death could not overcome. It was as though her back was being ripped apart.

[END DREAM SEQUENCE]

"NO-O-O-O-O!!!!!!" she screamed with a hoarse voice as she shot up from her lying position.

Round drops of sweat rolled down her forehead as she panted heavily with her face down and eyes wide.

_'I-it...it was a dream...?'_ she thought, as she looked at her trembling hands that were clasping the white covers of the bed she found herself to be in.

She slowly raised her gaze and scanned her surroundings. It was a dark room with some furniture standing here and there.

_'Where am I...? Am I...still dreaming...?_' she wondered puzzled.

She slowly released her grip on the covers and hesitated before stretching out her arms. _'Please...I must be dreaming...let it al be a dream...please...let me wake up in my own warm bed...in Celes..._'she pleaded inwardly with all her might and closed her eyes.

In one swift motion, Kagome pulled her hands to her chest. She immediately gasped aloud and regretted trying as the moment her hands touched her chest, a surge of tormenting pain shot through her entire back.

Her hands started to tremble even worse as they slowly parted from her chest. "N-no..." she panted as tears stung her eyes.

Unable to accept the cruel reality, she stretched out her arms once again.

Just when she was about to pull her hands to her chest again, a firm voice stopped her.

"It's no use, so stop trying."

Kagome quickly turned to where it came from and stopped when she noticed a silhouette in the now open doorway in front of her.

It was too dark to distinguish any features, but from the pitch of the voice, she knew it had to be a man.

"Who" she asked but was cut off before she could finish.

"Rest, you'll need it." he spoke again and left the bedroom before Kagome could even say or ask anything else.

After the sound of the door closing, Kagome dropped her face. She knew the man was right. It's no use trying again...everything that she had experienced in her dream was reality and there's no use denying it.

Her wings had been torn off. She had lost her ability to go home...forever. And she had got no one to blame but herself.

Suddenly yet silently, she bursts into tears as she slowly lied down on her side on soft mattress. _'I shouldn't have doubted mother's warning...I shouldn't have left the group...I-I...I shouldn't have trusted them...those...Earthlings...'_ she blamed herself inwardly. _'I...want to go home...mother...Kikyou onee-sama... please take me home...'_

-.-.-.-.-

"Rest, you'll need it," were his only words before he exited the chamber.

He knew the girl had started to cry the moment he closed the doors behind him as he caught the salty scent in the air. But he would not waste any more time on the girl.

Ever since he had brought her to the castle, the nights have become quite unquiet. With his excellent sense of hearing, he would even be able to hear her moaning if she was locked up in another keep.

Why he went to check the girl out instead of letting a servant do it was even a mystery to the demon lord himself. Although he had to admit that he felt less annoyed when he found out that the girl had awaken from her seemingly endless slumber, he would certainly make sure it would never happen again.

With that thought pinned down onto his memory, he walked away from the chamber and down the hall.

-.-.-.-.-.-

Kagome woke up the next morning with the sun shining on her face through the large rectangular windows.

_'I fell asleep...'_ she thought as she slowly pushed herself to a sitting position.

She squeezed her eyes shit and bit her lower lip when she felt the pain coming from her back. _'Face the reality Kagome...there's no denying it now...'_ the voice in her mind told her and she slowly opened her eyes again.

She didn't notice it last night since it was too dark, but now she realized she wasn't wearing her own outfit.

Instead of her silver-blue Greek one, she was now dressed in a simple white outfit that resembled a nightdress. It had long sleeves and a small V-shaped neckline with a simple collar. Beneath the soft fabric, she saw that her entire chest was wrapped up with white bandage.

Kagome quickly held the covers against her chest when she remembered she was covered in blood before. She was taken by surprise when a voice broke her thoughts.

"You don't have to make such a horrified face, I was the one cleaning your body and changing your clothes."

Kagome looked up and followed the voice, only to find a girl standing in the open doorway of the chamber.

She was holding an iron tray in her hands. Yet from her appearance, she didn't look like a servant at all. She was wearing a fresh orange outfit with long sleeves and tiny white flowers embroidered on it. It was a garment Kagome had never seen before.

The girl, who seemed to be older than Kagome herself, had brown eyes and long black hair tied into two thick braids that were resting on each of her shoulders.

Kagome quickly scooted backwards on the bed when she saw that the girl was walking closer to the bed. She winced with her teeth on her lower lip when she felt the pain in her back again.

"Be careful! You might open up your wounds again!" the girl with the tray spoke hastily.

But Kagome only gave her a wary look. _'The nicer they look...the more ugly they are within...'_ she warned herself in her mind. _'Except...for him...'_ she added, slightly being able to recall a certain man saving her life.

The girl smiled. "You don't have to trust me, but you can't fight your own stomach...can you?"

Kagome dropped her gaze and put a hand on her belly. She hated to admit it but she was indeed starting to get hungry. But before she could make a decision, the girl already decided for her as she put the tray on the dark-brown nightstand next to the bed.

"I'll come back later to retrieve it," she said before turning to leave.

Kagome watched her close the door behind her and finally dropped the wary expression on her face.

Her attention was soon drawn by the fine smell of bread and she turned to the tray beside her. Water filled her mouth when she saw a piece of warm bread on a white plate, accompanied by a glass filled with liquid at the corner of the tray.

_'If you don't eat...you will die...' _the voice in her head warned her.

_'If it's poisoned...I will die sooner...'_ she snorted back.

_'Then you'll die either way. Why not die with a filled stomach then?'_ it reasoned.

After pondering on the words for several minutes, Kagome finally gave in and stretched out her hand to pick up the bread.

Reluctantly, she tore a small piece and put it in her mouth.

After she had made sure it wasn't poisonous, she started to chew faster and quickly took a bit before she even swallowed the previous piece.

Within minutes, she finished up everything. Without hesitating, she reached out for the glass on the tray and drank its content, which appeared to be water.

It was that moment; Kagome had started to study her surroundings.

She found herself sitting on a large wooden bed with white sheets and covers. It was located in a quite big chamber with gray walls of stone and a floor made of wooden boards. A wardrobe could be seen next to the doors from across her and a long mirror was standing beside it. Together with the nightstand, they were all made of the darkest wood she had ever seen.

The last furniture in the room, which stood not too far away from the bedside, however, amazed her the most. It appeared to be a chair. But it was covered with a thick burgundy material that looked extremely soft.

Unable to suppress her curiosity, Kagome slowly crawled her way to the chair and without leaving the bed; she stretched out her arm to touch it.

_'It's soft...'_ she thought as she caressed the thick arm of the chair. _'I wonder how it feels to be sitting on it...'_

"It's called a divan," a voice suddenly spoke from the doorway.

Kagome immediately retracted her hand as if she had burned it and turned to the voice. It was that girl again.

Slightly ashamed of her curiosity, Kagome scooted back to where she was sitting a moment ago. But she realized that the girl was actually more focused on the now empty tray than her.

"I'm glad you gave up fighting with your own stomach," she smiled as she made her way to the nightstand.

She picked up the tray and turned to Kagome. "By the way, sorry fro not introducing myself earlier. I'm Rin. What's your name?" she asked. "I suppose you do have a name, do you not?"

But Kagome only responded with a wary expression on her face. _'Is she to be trusted...?'_ she pondered inwardly.

With a sigh, the girl named Rin gave up the staring-competition and started to leave.

Just when she was about to reach the doors, Kagome opened her mouth. "Where..."

The girl quickly turned around. "Hm?"

"Where am I...? Where...is this place...and why...am I not...dead...?" Kagome asked hesitatingly.

"You're in the castle owned by Sesshoumaru-sama, the great lord of the Western Lands," Rin began. "You arrived here a couple of days ago. You were in very bad shape, since you lost a lot of blood. I guess you were lucky to have encountered Sesshoumaru-sama."

Kagome raised an invisible brow. _'Sesshou...maru-sama...? Is that...the one who was here before...?'_ she thought to herself, recalling the silhouette at the doorway last night.

Just when she thought about another question, the girl drew her attention again. "You better get some rest, since you are still very weak of the loss of blood. I will come back later to change the bandage," she said and turned around to leave with the empty tray in her hands.

Kagome carefully settled herself under the covers again after the sound of the door closing. She had to admit that the girl was right, as she felt indeed very weak to even remain in the sitting position for too long.

_'Sesshoumaru-sama...'_ she thought as her eyes drifted towards to the blue sky beyond the glass outside. _'Why...did he save me...?'_

-.-.-.-.-.-

=KNOCK KNOCK=

After receiving no reply, Rin opened the door to the balcony.

Just as she had expected, Sesshoumaru was indeed standing on his balcony and gazing at the horizon under the clear blue sky.

"Sesshoumaru-sama," she greeted him with a polite bow.

"She had finished the food I brought her and she should be resting right now," she explained on her own initiative.

A moment of silence passed before she dared to ask the question that had been haunting her the moment she saw the in blood covered unconscious girl on Sesshoumaru's arms when he returned from his patrol.

"Why...did Sesshoumaru-sama save the girl...?"

Needless to say, the demon lord didn't answer her question and remained silent.

"I see..." Rin said sounding disappointed. "I'll go and pick some flowers for the castle." With that, she turned to leave.

"Rin," his low voice suddenly halted her, but after calling her name he did not say anything else.

Rin formed a smile upon her lips, as she knew what Sesshoumaru wanted to say. "Don't worry Sesshoumaru-sama, I'll be careful."

And then she left.

-.-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru slowly looked over his shoulder to the balcony door. It was not that he didn't want to answer Rin's question, but he did not know the answer to it himself either.

And furthermore, he didn't even want to think about such trivial matter. He had got more important things to think about.

Yes, like how to send that impudent Naraku to oblivion once and for all.

His gaze dropped to the two swords that were attached to his waist with a long sash, which was yellow with purple ends.

Surely he won't be able to count on his reckless half-blooded brother...correction...half-brother, since his mind is only set on retrieving the stupid jewel from Naraku for his undead woman.

His eyes then traveled up to his left arm. Not to mention that he still had something to settle with the hanyou.

Sesshoumaru raised his left hand and flexed his clawed hand. _'There's no way this Sesshoumaru would let someone get away after cutting off my arm...even if it's my half-brother.'_ These past 15 years, which his arm took to regenerate, seemed forever in the demon lord's eyes.

_'And there's no way someone could get away after dishonoring this Sesshoumaru, the great lord of the Western Lands!'_ he growled inwardly, recalling how foolish he was when he accepted that disgusting human arm with the jewel shard in it from Naraku and used it to get Tetsusaiga from his stupid half-brother. Without knowing it, he had been caught in the dispute between the two hanyou. As a result, not only had he failed to retrieve the Tetsusaiga, becoming one of Naraku's tools for revenge had dishonored him greatly.

Yes, revenge shall be sweet.

A scowl appeared on his face as he recalled what a disgraceful scene it was when the stupid hanyou failed to retrieve the last shard of the jewel in front of their father's grave. Luckily, he was able to arrive on time.

Sesshoumaru looked at one of the swords around his waist. He was truly surprised when the guards of the youkai graveyard let him pass when they saw Tenseiga.

He was even more surprised when he was able to cut through Naraku's barrier and dealt the most damage to that ugly body of his. Something the hanyou couldn't do even after learning the new attack of Tetsusaiga.

The demon lord reached into his sleeve and took out a small glass shard. _'With his sick obsession of completing the jewel, he would surely appear at his castle someday.' _he thought to himself.

His annoying little half-brother would become a nuisance as well since he wanted to destroy Naraku with his own claws so badly. But if the rumors were true about that wolf prince having some of the remaining shards, then he would have nothing to worry about.

All he had to do right now is wait.

Mindlessly, his eyes traveled to the windows of the chamber where the now wingless girl was staying.

Suddenly, the demon lord recalled the words of the winged one named Kikyou.

_"I'm afraid that my father would never stop sending people to your lands if his dear daughter is still missing. So the sooner we find her, the sooner we'll stop intruding your lands."_

_"We will leave for now, but we will come back when the moon shares the same shape as tonight (a month) again. I hope you would be able to bring us good news by then."_

An invisible amusement appeared on Sesshoumaru's face.

_'She could be of some use to me by then...'_

-- Celes --

"A whole month!!?" the kind cried out disbelievingly as he jumped up from his throne. He was dressed in a grand red robe with a golden-colored sash around his waist.

Kikyou, dressed in a white long-sleeved robe with a wide neckline, bowed. "Yes father. We're intruding his lands after all, so one month is necessary to ease that lord's pride."

With wide eyes, the king sat down again.

"I'm sure the youkai lord would lend us a hand somehow since he wouldn't want us entering his property repeatedly," Kikyou added reassuringly.

Moira, who sat beside Kronos on the throne, turned to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Kikyou is right, my dear, if that lord really that filled with pride like she told us then it's better that we not disrespect him any further. We wouldn't want him to hurt our sweet Kagome, would we?" she reasoned.

Kronos balled his fists. "If only I could go there to reason with that"

"You know it's not possible," the queen cut him off. "This kingdom cannot lose its ruler, not even for a day."

"I know," the king sighed. "But I swear on my father's grave, that if that youkai lord tried to hurt my daughter, I will definitely make him pay!"

Moira placed her hand on the king's. "I'm sure you wouldn't have to," she smiled.

But inside, the queen couldn't help but worry about her youngest daughter. _'Something is definitely wrong...'_ she thought disturbed, when she remembered Kikyou telling them that they couldn't sense her presence. _'As long as winged ones still have their wings, they can feel the presence of each other...but then that means'_

Moira shook off the horrible thought. She knew it was just a possibility and that it wouldn't be wise to tell the king about this. _'Until we've heard anything about her whereabouts....it's better to keep this to myself...'_ she decided inwardly.

_'Kagome...please be okay...'_

* * *

Hahaha, a reviewer once told me that it would be better to keep Sesshoumaru's character as original as possibly. And personally I have to admit that I like that better than making him OOC (though he's quite OOC in An Elves' Child).

What did you think of this chapter? Not much fluff...but I guess you can't expect that if you want Sesshoumaru as original as possible hehehe. Please tell me by review okay? Thanks!!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Unwanted existence**

-.-.-.-.-  
"Why did you save me? (...) You could have let me die...back then...why did you save me?"

"Why?!!"

"Leave, (...) you are becoming a nuisance."  
-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**onii-san:** big brother  
**onee-sama: **big sister  
**youkai lord: **demon lord  
**Tenseiga:** Sword given to Sesshoumaru by his father. It's said that it can heal any wound and revive the dead if its master wishes to.  
**Tetsusaiga:** Sword given to Inuyasha by his father. It's said that it can kill 100 demons with one swing.

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**bad-girl4: **Yeah I know, very harsh of me huh? Sorry for not entering the fluff that fast, the reason is explained above though. I think your question has been answered after reading this chapter no? Anyhow, thanks for reviewing!

**Tinkerbell-69-4ever:** Thanks for reviewing! I hope this pace of updating is fast enough, although the next time won't be before 2nd of July. I will explain bit by bit (with dreams haha) how everything happened by the way :). I'm glad you like the story so far.

**meaghan: **Thanks!

**drow goddess:** I'm glad you like it! And yeah, those stupid humans did tore off her wings like that...

**Shadow-Demon14:** Yeah, it's really mean...and cruel too. Don't worry, they will pay...I'll make them pay hahaha and if I don't I think Sesshoumaru will...oops...did I just say that? Never mind! Hahaha, I'm glad you understood what I meant!

**weird0:** Thank you very much! Hahaha hmm never thought my story would sound uninteresting, but I don't mind at all :).

**Mysthique:** Thanks!

**seishi1: **Woops, didn't mean to make you nearly cry, I'm sorry!! But the answer is no...her wings won't grow back. Kagome doesn't have the powers to heal or to fight, but a combination of them: to purify :).

**robin's-hope: **I'm happy to know that you love the story :). Thanks for reviewing! I hope this pace of updating is fast enough, but I'll have to apologize since my next installment won't be there before the 2nd of July.

**silverstargazing: **Thanks for reviewing :).

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Hehehe, it's really a sad chapter...this one's a bit better no? I'm happy that you could picture everything.

**demonswty:** Nope, her wings won't back anymore sniff. But don't worry, she will overcome it, somehow.

**HanyouAkita:** Thank you very much :).

**White Fox 612:** Thanks! I'm glad you like it!!

**Fire Kitsune Goddess: **Woah Fire Kitsune Goddess is becoming angry...I better go hiding somewhere safe...hides behind a rock. Euhm... don't worry coz euhm...they will regret taking her wings away...later...ok? peeks from behind rock

**Defafaeth Mechqua:** Haha I don't mind. Thanks for reviewing!

**Kyia:** Good to hear that. Thanks for telling me about the mistakes; I'll prevent those mistakes from occurring in the future :) (too lazy to correct the previous chapters hehehe). And nope, the wings won't grow back.

**boo:** I'm doing my best :).

Posted: 20 June 2004  
Last Edited: 20 June 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	5. Unwanted existence

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hey everybody! Thanks for waiting! I hope you all haven't forgotten about this story (yet). Anyhow, the tests and deadlines are finally over =jumps a hole in the air=. I do hope I haven't made them very badly, but I guess I'll just have to wait for the results huh?

But still, a bad news is coming up. Well, it's good news to me, but kind of bad for you readers. I'm off to Greece with friends in a couple of days and I won't be back before 16 July, so you can't expect me to update before that date. Sorry about that. But I will take pen and paper with me so as soon as I have returned from Greece; I will post the next chapter as soon as possible!

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts   
-- --: locations   
"...": spoken words   
-.-.-.-.-: time gap   
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Unwanted existence**

There are some readers who don't quite understand the history of my story at the moment, and that's why this first part of the new chapter will be dedicated to clear up some uncertainties :).

First of all, I mentioned this story would be an Alternate Universe, and it still is, despite the fact that there are some elements of the original storyline mixed within this story. Second of all, the future-girl called Kagome never existed. And yes, the 'undead woman' I mentioned in the previous chapter is in fact Kikyou. Then how come she has been revived, you must be wondering.

All right, let me explain things one by one. Before arrival of the future-Kagome, Onigumo became Naraku and made Inuyasha and Kikyou hate each other, this is something that won't even change when I take away the future-Kagome-element. Even without Kagome, Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru still fought over the blade Tetsusaiga and the fight resulted in Inuyasha cutting off Sesshoumaru's left arm. Then one day, some miko dug up Kikyou's remainders and created an undead version of the woman. Now this is what I thought: if her soul never reincarnated, it should still be within her remainders (ashes). So basically Kikyou's soul has been revived in her new body that's made of earth and clay. Hence the 'undead woman' reference. But now there are two Kikyou's!! Hahaha well, two people having the same name is possible right? And yeah, they will be looking alike (which I'm going to make good use of hehe =evil grin=). But the one of the moon has a minor role compared to the one on Earth, plus their characters will be quite the opposite of each other so you will be able to distinguish between them :), don't worry.

About the Shikon no Tama, it remained intact (honestly, I don't think a jewel can be burned to ashes, but that's just my opinion hehehe) and was dug up together with Kikyou's remainders . But it still got broken into shards, only not by the future-Kagome, but by Kikyou when she and Naraku were fighting over it (pretty lame explanation but it's better than nothing haha).

The seal placed upon Inuyasha wore off eventually and he learned about the truth behind the betrayal of Kikyou. Eventually he met up with Kikyou and together they started their journey in search of the jewel shards.

Wolves killed the human girl called Rin and Sesshoumaru revived her again. That's about the entire history.

The present time of my story is about 15 years after Sesshoumaru revived Rin. Naraku has the almost-complete Shikon no Tama and the last remaining shards are the two in Kouga's legs, one in Inuyasha and Kikyou's possession and the last one in Sesshoumaru's possession. (SPOILER!) The whereabouts of the last shard in the manga was located in the youkai-graveyard, where the remainders of Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru's father were resting and this shard is the one in Sesshoumaru's possession right now. I better not reveal too much about the original storyline, if you want to know more, go to this site: www . wot-club.org.uk / Inuyasha / (without the spaces).

Sesshoumaru doesn't really care about the jewel, other than it can function as a bait to lure Naraku to his castle and spare him time of having to find him himself. Well this is about everything I can think of. I hope it has become a bit clearer now, if not, don't hesitate to ask okay? But before asking, you may also use your own imagination to fill in the gaps :). Enough of it! Let's begin with the content of the new and more exciting chapter!!

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

-.- By nightfall -.-

Sesshoumaru was about to reach his study when some faint noise caught his ears. When he turned to the origin, he realized it was coming from the wingless girl's chamber at the end of the hall.

_'What is it this time...?'_ he thought annoyed.

For a moment, the demon lord pondered whether he should ignore it or not. But he knew it was impossible for him to read in silence with his keen sense of hearing.

And so, he started to walk into the direction of her chamber.

-.-

He slowly opened the door.

_'Hm...she's having a nightmare again...'_ he concluded when he heard the heavy, short pants coming from the inside.

After entering, Sesshoumaru silently approached the bed, only to find the girl tossing and turning with the covers entangled around her body.

"Let...me...go..." he heard her mumble.

He watched her for several minutes and frowned when he realized she wasn't calming down. _'Her wounds will open again if she keeps rolling on her back like that.'_

Much to his surprise, the girl suddenly froze when he reached the edge of the bed. He looked at her sleeping face, which was shimmering because of a thin layer of sweat on her skin.

_'She's restless...'_ he thought, studying her frowning features. And he slowly reached out to free the girl from being strangled by the white, innocent cloth.

Just when his clawed hand got hold of the piece of fabric near her shoulder, her hand shot out and grabbed his sleeve.

The demon lord scowled. "Let go girl," he ordered with a low voice.

"P-please...help...me..." he heard her plead.

"It is only a dream," he tried again, but with no success as her grip on his sleeve only tightened.

After a short while, Sesshoumaru sighed and bowed lower to the girl's ear. "You are safe, now sleep," he whispered.

And miraculously, the girl relaxed again and released his sleeve.

Without hesitation, the demon lord quickly disentangled her from the covers and properly covered her body with it from her feet to her shoulders.

And without sparing her another look, he left the chamber again.

_'Annoying little girl, I will definitely make good use of you when the time comes...' _he thought to himself as he walked down the halls.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

[DREAM SEQUENCE]

Kagome was running through the forest again. Panting heavily as she looked over her shoulder at her pursuers.

It was the middle-aged man and his brother again and they were catching up on her.

_'I can't let them catch me...'_ Kagome thought panicked and quickly stretched out her hands. She felt relieved when her wings sprouted the moment her hands touched her chest.

But at the same time she found herself unable to move her limbs and wings.

When she looked at her wrists and ankles, she realized they were being chained. She quickly looked at her wings and widened her eyes when she found them being held by one of the men.

"Let me go..." she gasped as she saw the shimmering blade landing upon her white feathery wings.

In a flash, she suddenly found herself lying on the floor.

_'Where...am I...?'_ she wondered as she tried to get up. A sharp pain shot through her back and caused her to wince and fall back to the floor again.

Kagome felt awful, with her wet hair and garment plastered against her face and skin.

The sound of screeching filled the air and the next thing she knew she was being surrounded by ugly red bird-like creatures.

"Go...away..." she groaned, not sure whether it was the voice in her mind speaking or her own voice.

Much to her disgust and fear, the birds had started to fight each other over her body of flesh. Kagome had begun to lose all hope that moment.

Until suddenly, between all the screeching noises, she swore she could hear the footsteps of another presence.

With all her might, Kagome opened her dry mouth and pleaded for help. "P-please...help me..."

She couldn't see very clearly through her black locks, but not long after her pleading, she faintly saw a green whip-like object flash by over her body. And the next thing she knew she was looking at a lot of silver and a faint blurry mark that resembled a crescent moon.

The screeching of the birds sounded further away than before and Kagome felt the strands of hair being removed from her face. Although the strength was literally seeping out of her body, Kagome was still conscious to realize that something was touching her shoulder. And out of reflex, she stretched out her hand and grasped the fabric that caressed her skin.

_'Don't go...don't...leave...me...'_ she thought desperately.

She knew the person was saying something to her but she couldn't hear the words as her sense of hearing was already becoming numb. But surprisingly enough, she could still distinguish a soft whisper near her ear.

"You are safe, now sleep..."

After hearing that, her body relaxed.

Not really sure why, she knew the voice wasn't lying to her and she let go of the piece of fabric.

And then, everything became black again.

[END DREAM SEQUENCE]

-.-.-.-.- next day -.-.-.-.-

Kagome slowly opened her eyes with the fresh scent of flowers drifting towards her nose. She rubbed her eyes and slowly pushed herself up from her pillow.

Even today, Kagome still hoped that she was just having a bad dream and that she would find herself in her own bedroom when she woke up again. But unfortunately the stinging pain coming from her back kept reminding her of the cruel reality.

She had to face it. Humans she had unconditionally trusted ripped off her wings and until someone of Celes finds her, there was no way she could go home.

Kagome pulled up her knees and wrapped her arms around them. _'What if I could return to Celes...?'_ she thought sadly as she traced the bandage around her torso with her fingertips. _'These wounds will never grow wings again...and I'll be the only princess who was stupid enough to get her own wings torn off.'_ Tears welled up in her eyes. _'I'm a disgrace...'_ And she buried her head in her arms on her knees.

-.-

After sitting like that for a while, Kagome lifted her head up again. _'This scent is really nice...'_ she thought as she sniffed the air, which was filled with the scent of fresh picked flowers. _'I wonder where it's coming from...'_

Mindlessly, she made her way to the edge of the bed and carefully climbed off.

_'I can do this...'_ she bit her lips and forced herself on her trembling feet.

After getting used to the pressure on her feet, she took her first step into the direction of the door. Without the support of the wooden board at the end of the bed, she would surely have hit the floor badly. Her second attempt was better and so she managed to walk without support within a few minutes.

Barefooted and dressed thinly in her white nightdress, Kagome opened the door and entered the hall.

Although it was nothing compared to the grand halls of her castle in Celes, it was still something to look at.

A long red carpet decorated the floor and candleholders on the walls of stone softly illuminated the parts where there were no windows to let any sunlight enter.

_'Where are all the guards and servants...?'_ Kagome mused as she walked over the red carpet.

After a while, she arrived at a small garden.

Kagome widened her eyes. _'A garden within a castle?!'_ she thought amazed.

It was a small square-shaped garden with pink flowers and purple bushes growing at each corner. A fountain could be seen at the center with some small stone seats around it. Above the garden, there was a square-shaped opening in the roof with the same size as the garden itself.

Kagome slowly walked closer to the garden and knelt down in front of a pink flower. _'So this is the flower that was sending such a pleasant scent into my chamber...'_ she concluded.

Just when she was about to stretch out a finger to touch a petal, a voice halted her.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

Kagome quickly turned to the voice, but before she could see the one who spoke, a hard object hit her across her face and sent her away from the garden to one of the walls.

"Ack!!" she cried out loud when her back made an impact with the hard wall.

She slowly pushed herself up from the floor and shivered when something warm started to flow out of her back and downwards her back. Her eyes traveled to her side and she realized the wound on her back was starting to bleed again.

"That'll teach you for entering placed that are off-limits!!" a croaky voice spat.

Kagome turned to the voice, only to find herself face to face with an ugly green creature holding a long wooden staff in its wrinkled hand and dressed in a mud-green robe.

"I...y-you..." she stuttered shocked.

"Don't address me that unmannered!" the green creature yelled angrily and swung its staff at her again.

Kagome closed her eyes and quickly shielded her face with one arm while the other remained on the floor on order to prevent the contact between her face and the cold floor.

When nothing came, she lowered her arm and opened her eyes again.

The wooden staff was about 5 inches above her face. When Kagome looked more carefully, she realized that a clawed hand was holding the staff and preventing it from hitting her.

Her eyes traveled from the hand to its owner and she forgot the pain in her back in an instant.

It was a tall man with long silver-white hair. He was wearing a white outfit that was red at his left shoulder and at the end of each sleeve. Over the outfit, he wore brown armor that was protecting his lower torso and around his waist, a long yellow sash could be seen with purple ends. A white fluffy thing covered his right shoulder and almost reached the stone floor. Two swords could be seen hanging around his waist, one sheathed and the other unsheathed. A dark-purple crescent moon-mark decorated his forehead as two pairs of dark stripes graced his cheeks right below his gold-amber colored eyes.

It was by far the most graceful person Kagome had ever seen. Even her father dressed in the grandest way couldn't match up with this man.

_'Wait a minute...'_ she remembered. _'A dark crescent moon and a lot of silver...was he the one who saved me?'_

Her thoughts were cut off when she felt his eyes on her. She followed his line of vision to her side, only to find a small pool of red water that was still extending its territory little by little.

All of a sudden, Kagome felt the strength inside her leaking out of her body. Her arms suddenly lost their will to support her upper body and the next thing she knew she was falling towards to the floor again.

But before that happened, a strong arm reached out and caught her shoulders.

_'...Eh?'_ Kagome thought surprised as she slowly looked up, only meet two beautiful gold-amber orbs.

But she couldn't watch those eyes for long as consciousness started to leave her. And slowly, she fell into a deep slumber.

-.-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru became alerted when the weight on his arm suddenly increased.

He immediately turned to Jaken and shot him a glare of death, causing the green servant to cringe. "Get Rin," he ordered with a low growl.

After the servant disappeared, he turned to the girl again. "Foolish girl, why did you leave you chamber?" he asked, expecting no reply since she had already lost consciousness.

He shoved his other arm beneath her knees and scooped her up bridal style before walking into the direction of her chamber.

-- Kagome's chamber --

Just when the demon lord had finished laying the girl on her stomach on the bed, Rin appeared in the open doorway with a basket in her hands, which was filled with bandages and bottles.

"Sesshoumaru-sama," she called, broken in pants.

Sesshoumaru turned to Rin. "Tend her wounds," were his only command before turning to leave.

"Hai, Sesshoumaru-sama," she acknowledged and made her way to the bedside. Little did she know that the demon lord had turned over his shoulder to look at the bleeding girl on the bed one more time before he left.

-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru scowled as he walked down the halls. _'If the girl dies, I think I'll have to remove a servant.'_ he thought angrily, not exactly knowing where the anger came from.

_'If she dies within my lands, I'll be having a lot of trouble with those intruders...'_ he added inwardly as he remembered the winged women and their unmannered guards.

He frowned. _'Until then...I'll have to baby-sit her...? This Sesshoumaru...???'_ he thought annoyed as his eyes narrowed. _'I need to vent my anger...'_ he decided inwardly and started walking towards the servant-quarters.

-.-.-.-.-

"Nh..." Kagome groaned. She slowly opened her eyes and waited until her vision sharpened.

_'I'm...still here...'_ she thought disappointed as she recognized the unfamiliar ceiling, which had a beautiful tint of yellow and red.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she curled herself up op the bed. _'Why hasn't father sent anyone to find me? And mother...? They're too busy with ruling Celes huh? And Kikyou onee-sama...with her wedding... They don't have time to search for a rebellious and disobedient child like me...' _she wondered. _'Am I really that insignificant...? Why am I still alive then? Why was I saved...??'_

Kagome carefully pushed herself up. _'Maybe I should ask him...'_ she thought, recalling that the silver-haired person should be the one who had saved her.

As she climbed out of bed, she realized that the wounds on her back weren't hurting that much anymore, and that her clothes and bandages were new. _'How long have I been sleeping since the incident?'_ she wondered, faintly remembering the girl named Rin changing her bandages and cleaning her body.

She raised her hand to her right cheek and touched the place she was hit by the ugly servant with his staff. "Ow..." she winced aloud when it stung at her touch. _'I guess it wasn't that long ago...'_ she thought to herself and slowly made her way to the long mirror in the room next to the cabinet.

_'I've gotten thinner...'_ she concluded as she looked at her own reflection.

Kagome was dressed in a thin light-purple nightdress that reached her ankles. It had long sleeves and a shallow U-shaped neckline. But other than having a different outfit, Kagome knew there was something else about her that had changed.

_'My hair got a little bit longer compared to the day I arrived here...'_ she thought as she looked at her raven-black locks that reached her middle-torso. _'But that's not it...'_

And then her attention shifted to her right cheek, which was still a little bit brownish blue of color. _'I better avoid that toad from now on.'_

Her eyes traveled downwards to her hands and she pulled up her sleeves a little. _'The chain marks are fading.' _she thought slightly relieved, studying the faint red imprints around her wrists.

Without further thinking, Kagome combed her hair roughly with her fingers and made her way out of the chamber.

-.-.-

This time, she was more careful and made sure no one was there before entering places.

_'This place is like a maze...'_ she groaned inwardly after entering several similar halls. _'I wonder where he could be right now.'_

But her efforts weren't in vain as she eventually ended up arriving at a big courtyard.

Her eyes widened at the diversity of flowers and trees. There was even a small pond at the corner of the garden. From afar the flowers, which were in a wide variety of colors, seemed like stars that were floating above a fresh green carpet.

The beauty of the courtyard intrigued Kagome so much that she didn't notice someone was actually standing right behind her.

Suddenly she noticed the presence and slowly turned around. She gasped in shock when she saw the expressionless face of the silver-haired lord looking down at her.

"I-I'm sorry!! I...I just..." she stammered, trying to think of a good excuse for snooping around in his castle since she couldn't possible say she was actually looking for him.

Her train of thoughts crashed abruptly when the demon lord suddenly took hold of her chin and moved her face to the left.

Kagome watched how he nonchalantly studied the bruise on her right cheek and let go of her chin again.

Without saying anything, the demon lord turned around and started to walk away.

_'He's not going to scold or punish me...?'_ Kagome thought puzzled. "Ses...Sesshoumaru...sama?" she hesitated before calling the name she thought him to be the owner of. She was relieved when she saw that the silver-haired lord had stopped walking upon hearing his name.

"Euhm...thank you...for saving me that day," she stuttered.

But she received not response and only realized that the demon lord had started to walk away again.

She quickly followed him without hesitation. Partly because she wanted to know why he had saved her but mostly because she had forgotten the way back to her own chamber.

-.-.-

After following a while, they had arrived at a door. The demon lord opened it and entered the room.

Not sure what she should do, Kagome stayed in the open doorway and peeked inside.

It appeared to be a study. The walls were white and the floor had a burgundy carpeting. Bookcases stood everywhere and a desk could be seen at the center of the space with a wooden chair behind it. Long oval-shaped windows in the wall from across her allowed sufficient light into the room, despite the fact that it was already dusk.

A faint and almost inaudible sigh caught her attention again and Kagome realized that the demon lord was standing next to the open door, giving her an expectant look. As if it was saying: "In or out?"

Without thinking, Kagome quickly entered the study.

She watched how the silver-haired demon named Sesshoumaru closed the door behind her, made his way to one of the windowsills and sat down with his eyes locked on something beyond the glass.

After a short moment, he turned away from the window and sat down behind his desk. He took out some paper documents from one of the shelves and started to read them.

"Euhm...Sesshoumaru-sama?" Kagome asked with a meek voice.

Much to her disappointment, the demon lord didn't respond or look up from the papers.

"Why did you...save me?" she asked after a short moment of silence.

This time, Kagome knew she had caught his attention since he looked up from the documents at her. He was giving her an annoyed look, which was almost saying "Why are you still here?".

Ignoring the uneasiness of being looked at like that, Kagome continued. "You could have let me die...back then...why did you save me??"

Without answering her question, the demon lord dropped his eyes to the papers again.

"Why?!?!" This time Kagome was the one becoming annoyed. But she instantly regretted it as she received an icy glare.

"Leave," Sesshoumaru commanded with an irritated voice without looking up.

But Kagome didn't move.

Sesshoumaru then looked up at her again and frowned. "Leave!!!" he repeated.

"I don't know the way back!!" Kagome argued.

"That is none of my concern, now leave," he replied coldly. "You are becoming a nuisance."

Kagome's face almost instantly dropped and reluctantly, she turned around to leave.

-.-.-.- later -.-.-.-

The moment Kagome closed the door of her chamber behind her it was already near dark.

She silently walked towards the long mirror and looked at her reflection.

The candles on the table next to the mirror slightly illuminated her face and features. Slowly she traced the outline of her face on the mirror with her fingertips. _'What am I doing...?'_ she asked herself inwardly. _'Why am I still here...alive...?' _

-.-.-

Sesshoumaru slammed his documents on the desk. _'Who does she think she is? Talking to me and asking me questions like that!!'_ he growled inwardly.

At first he had to admit that he did not mind her presence. He was even surprised when the girl addressed him so formally and thanked him for saving her pitiful life.

_'But she shouldn't have pushed her luck.'_ he thought with a frown.

_"You could have let me die...back then...why did you save me??"_

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes. _'As if she didn't want to be saved at all! How ungrateful!!'_

He stood up from his chair and walked to the door. _'Hm...maybe I should have let her die...and be those wretched vultures' dinner.'_

With that thought, he opened the door to the hall and exited the study.

Just when he was about to turn into the direction of his own quarters, a sharp sound of shattering glass echoed faintly through the halls.

= SHATTER =

Sesshoumaru looked over his shoulder to where the sound came from. _'Stupid girl...venting her frustration on my property huh? I will make you regret it tomorrow...' _

He turned away and started to walk.

Suddenly, a certain scent gushed out of the same chamber and filled the halls.

Sesshoumaru abruptly stopped walking and turned to the origin. _'The scent of blood...her blood!!'_ he thought alarmed and began to dash through the hall towards her chamber. _'And a lot of it...!!'_

* * *

Oops, I didn't want to stop at a cliffhanger, since I won't be posting the next chapter before the 16th of July. Sorry!! But I still hope you liked the chapter! A bit angsty...but things are getting better and better :), trust me! Please look forward to the next chapter okay?

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Swaying attitude**

-.-.-.-.-  
And the sound of blood hitting the floor echoed in the silent chamber.

=TAP TAP TAP=

"Let me go..."

"Don't move, you will quicken the bleeding,"

"Don't you understand? I'm a disgrace!! I've disobeyed my mother and lost my wings! I don't deserve to be the seventh princess of Celes!! I'm a nuisance!! I don't deserve to live!! I should have died back then!!"  
-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**miko:** priestess  
**hai: **yes  
**onee-sama:** big sister

-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**bad-girl4: **Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you like it!

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Thank you very much :).

**weird0:** =relieved= pfew, hahaha just kidding! Anyhow, thanks, I hope you liked this chapter!

**demonswty:** I'll try, but I'll have to disappoint you the coming two weeks.

**PegasusRider:** Thanks thanks!! I'm happy to hear you like it!

**silverstargazing:** Woops, there is indeed a 10-days limit, but I still want to go to Greece (where there will be not internet possibilities)...please forgive me!

**boo: **Thanks!

**Fox Fire 6126: **I'm sorry for the frustrations. I've explained several things at the beginning of this chapter, I hope you still understand the storyline after reading it :).

**kagomesirene: **Another nice review, thank you so much!

**Shadow-Demon14:** I'm glad you liked An Elves' Child. I was afraid readers would dislike it because of the OOC-ness of Sesshoumaru. And Rin isn't a maid, she just follows Sesshoumaru until she dies (I think hehe). Don't hesitate to ask when things aren't making sense, because I'll be happy to explain :).

**fullmoon:** Thanks!

**PinkTigerLilly: **I'm glad to hear that :).

**Fire Kitsune Goddess:** =shivers= oh my...you are sooooo evil...but I like it hahaha. It reminds me of the technique Kurama used to kill that ...euhm what was his name again... in Yu Yu Hakusho. Yeah, those guys will pay, but how...would still be a mystery hehehe.

**robin's-hope: **Sesshoumaru's arm already grew back before he met Kagome from the moon :). I hope I have made that clear at the beginning of this chapter hehe. If things don't make sense, please tell me okay? And don't worry for not reviewing sooner, because I'm the one who should feel guilty since I won't be updating before 16 July =sigh=.

**hissori tenshi no benishi: **Thanks for telling me :). I'll keep that in mind!

Posted: 2 July 2004  
Last Edited: 2 July 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	6. Swaying attitude

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hey everybody! I'm back again!!! I hope you all haven't forgotten about this story :). Crete was really fun! Very sunny, people are nice, food is good...really unforgettable holiday!! Of course, I haven't forgotten about this story. It took me a lot of concentration to finish a chapter, but here it is finally hahaha. Sorry for letting you all wait!

Oh by the way, I got my grades back and I've passed both tests and the deadline!! I'm soooo happy!!

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts   
-- --: locations   
"...": spoken words   
-.-.-.-.-: time gap   
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Swaying attitude**

**Previously:**  
Suddenly, a certain scent gushed out of the same chamber and filled the halls.

Sesshoumaru abruptly stopped walking and turned to the origin. _'The scent of blood...her blood!!'_ he thought alarmed and began to dash through the hall towards her chamber. _'And a lot of it...!!'_

-.-.-.-.-.-

The door to Kagome's chamber flung open and Sesshoumaru couldn't believe what he saw.

The girl was standing calmly in front of a broken mirror and silently watching her own reflection that was long gone. There were shards and pieces of glass lying everywhere around her feet. One of the shards, however, was covered in blood. And the sound of blood hitting the floor echoed in the silent chamber.

=TAP TAP TAP=

Without further thinking, Sesshoumaru ran to the girl and grabbed both her wrists. He had hoped not to see what he feared for as he lifted up her wrists up to his eyes but there they were. Two fresh cuts could be seen on each of her wrists and red liquid was gushing out of them.

When Sesshoumaru shifted his gaze from the wrists to their owner, he found her looking at him with a calm, nonchalant expression.

"Let me go..." she said with a soft voice.

The demon lord ignored the girl and turned his head to the doorway. "RIN!!!!" he yelled.

"Let me go!!!!" the girl repeated and struggled to escape from his strong grip.

Sesshoumaru turned back to her. "Don't move, you will quicken the bleeding," he ordered.

But that did not calm her down. "Just let me die!! I've got nowhere to go anymore!!!" she cried as tears stung her eyes.

Sesshoumaru didn't respond to this, he only stood there and kept his clawed hands firmly around the cuts to slow down the bleeding.

After several seconds, the girl stopped struggling and dropped her face to the floor until her bangs were covering her eyes. "Father and mother won't send people to get me...even Kikyou onee-sama didn't come to save me... And I can't go back...can't...go...back..."

She raised her head and looked the demon lord straight in the eyes with her teary navy ones. "Don't you understand? I'm a disgrace!! I've disobeyed my mother and lost my wings! I don't deserve to be the seventh princess of Celes!! I'm a nuisance!! I don't deserve to live!! I should have died back then!!"

She pushed her fists towards Sesshoumaru's chest and started to launch soft punches onto it. "Why did you have to save me? You should have let me die!!" she cried, broken in sobs.

Not really sure how to respond to this, Sesshoumaru just watched in silence how the girl vented her frustration upon his chest. But he was totally surprised by what happened next as she stopped punching his chest.

The girl suddenly collapsed to his chest and buried her head into his haori.

As if his body acted by itself, Sesshoumaru slowly let go of her wrists and moved his arms towards her back.

Right before they actually touched her back, he snapped out of it. _'What the hell am I doing?'_ he asked himself ridiculously.

But before he could even think of a proper explanation, the girl was putting her full weight onto his chest as she started to lose consciousness.

Out of reflex, the demon lord placed his hand on her back and held the girl close to him to prevent her from falling to the hard floor.

At that moment, Rin arrived. She widened her eyes when she saw the blood on the floor and the unconscious girl leaning onto Sesshoumaru's chest. "Sesshoumaru-sama...what happened?" she asked, broken in pants.

Sesshoumaru didn't reply nor turn to her, instead, he only looked down at the girl in his arms with an expression on his face that was unfamiliar to Rin.

-.-.-.-.-.-

As Rin cleaned Kagome's body, she couldn't help but steal glanced at Sesshoumaru once in a while. _'What was that look on his face a while ago...?'_ she mused bewilderedly.

More surprisingly, the demon lord didn't even intend leave the chamber when she said she was going to clean the girl's body and change her clothes. He merely walked towards a window and turned his back to them.

Rin started to clean the hands of the sleeping Kagome and mindlessly studied the bandages around the girl's wrists that were keeping the remaining fluid of life within her body.

Was her Sesshoumaru-sama changing? She couldn't help but wonder.

She had been following him ever since he had given her a second chance in life when she just turned 8. In these past 15 years, she had not been able to affect the demon lord as much as this strange girl had in the past week.

Rin gave the sleeping girl an envious look. _'Who or what are you...? And where did you come from?'_ she thought. _'What did you do to make him look at you with that expression...?'_

Eventually, she finished cleaning and changing Kagome in a clean white nightdress.

"Sesshoumaru-sama?" she called as she gathered all the dirty cloths and bottles in a basket. "I'm done."

After pulling the white blanket over Kagome's lower body, Rin picked up the basket and turned to leave.

She had expected the dog demon to leave as well, but much to her disappointment, he stayed behind.

Reluctantly, Rin exited the chamber and closed the door behind her before shuffling down the hall.

-.-.-.-.-.-

After the door closed, Sesshoumaru finally turned around and looked at the girl on the bed. His eyes slowly traveled to his hands, which were stained with blood...her blood. He made his way to the divan next to the bed and sat down.

Sesshoumaru studied her pale face as he replayed her outburst of anger and sadness in his mind.

_"Don't you understand? I'm a disgrace!! I've disobeyed my mother and lost my wings! I don't deserve to be the seventh princess of Celes!! I'm a nuisance!! I don't deserve to live!! I should have died back then!!"_

_'A disgrace...huh?'_ he thought nonchalantly.

Though he hated the scent of blood as much as Naraku, the thought of washing off her blood of his clawed hands surprisingly did not cross the dog demon's mind at all.

It was annoying...yes, the girl was indeed annoying him. But why did he have the desire to see her open her eyes again? Why did the thought of never being able to see those depthless navy orbs again made him uneasy?

Suddenly at that moment, he felt a pulse coming from the left side of his waist.

When Sesshoumaru dropped his gaze to his waist, he realized that one of the two swords was pulsating.

_'Tenseiga?_' the demon lord thought surprised.

=PULSATE=

_'You want to heal her...?'_ Sesshoumaru asked inwardly, as his right hand slowly reached out for the hilt.

The demon lord stood up from the divan and unsheathed the healing fang, his eyes never leaving the sleeping girl on the bed.

He silently approached the bedside and raised Tenseiga up to the air. _'I can see them...'_ he thought, narrowing his eyes.

Several hideous creatures were hovering above the girl's body. They were bald, skinny and had a white skin. They had big round eyes that almost looked as thought they were about to fall out of their wrinkled heads, if it were not for their large eyelids.

Without further hesitation, Sesshoumaru slashed through the life-sucking creatures and waited for some reaction from the sleeping girl.

Slowly, her face began to regain its original healthy color again.

The demon lord's eyes traveled to the thick bandage around her wrists and he hesitated several seconds before sheathing Tenseiga and sitting down on the edge of the bed.

Curious whether the deep lethal gashes had recovered, Sesshoumaru carefully lifted up her right wrist and rested it onto his lap. He slowly started to unwind the bandage that was partly painted red of her blood.

After a short while of unwinding, he finally reached the skin.

Although his expression remained as stoic as always, he felt slightly relieved when he saw no gash or scar on her wrist.

His eyes narrowed, however, when they fell on the faint chain marks. _'They didn't heal...?' _he thought surprised. _'Why...?'_

His gaze shifted to the face of the sleeping girl. _'You won't let me heal those wounds...why...?'_ he asked in his mind.

After he concluded that it was no use solving that mystery on his own, Sesshoumaru gently put her wrist back on the mattress. He stood up from the bed and sat down on the divan again.

And without actually realizing it, the demon lord drifted into a shallow slumber.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The singing of birds could faintly be heard as the first rays of the rising sun fell on Kagome's face, waking her up from her deep slumber.

Slowly, but carefully, she got up into a sitting position. _'W-where am I?' _she thought fuzzily. _'What happened...?'_

Her half-sleepy eyes shifted to the broken mirror and the pile of glass shards on the floor. _'That's right...I tried to...kill myself...'_ she thought with an emotionless expression.

But then something clicked inside her and she quickly looked down at her wrists. Her eyes widened at the flawless skin of her right wrist, except for some faint red chain marks.

_'Huh...?' _ Kagome thought puzzled and immediately began to unwind the bandage around her left wrist. _'Wait a minute...'_ she said inwardly as she realized that her left wrist was flawless as well. _'How...why...?'_ she wondered confused.

It was then that she finally noticed something unusual at the spot where the divan should be standing.

Kagome looked up form her wrists to the side of her bed and widened her eyes again of surprise.

It was the silver-haired demon lord. He was sitting on the burgundy furniture and resting his back against the back with his head slightly tilted aside and forward. Several strands of silver had escaped from behind his pointy ears and were shading a small part of his calm face.

Slowly and silently, Kagome crawled on the bed towards the demon lord until she was facing him. _'What is he doing here...?' _she wondered with her eyes locked on his sleeping face.

Then she suddenly remembered what had happened after she cut her wrists. The whole scene reenacted itself inside her mind and she could clearly see the silver-haired demon standing before her again. He was holding both her wrists and she was desperately trying to escape from his grip.

_"Let me go!!"_

_"Don't move, you will quicken the bleeding..."_

Being deep in thoughts, Kagome reached out her hand to the displaced strands of silver hair. Her eyes followed her hand as it carefully placed the strands back to its place behind the dog demon's ear.

Mindlessly, her eyes slowly drifted back to Sesshoumaru's face again. But this time it looked different that before.

It took Kagome several seconds to realize that the demon lord was fully awake now and was looking at her with his gold-amber eyes.

Taken aback by surprise, Kagome totally forgot that her hand was stretched out and touching the demon's ear and they remained frozen like that for a short moment, which seemed like forever.

Their staring competition ended when the dog demon shifted his gaze from Kagome's eyes to her arm that was still stretched out next to his head.

Kagome immediately realized what he was looking at and quickly retracted her hand while dropping her gaze to the bed. "I-I'm sorry..." she apologized meekly.

Though her eyes were fixed on her knees on the bed, she could still feel his icy glare on her. _'What should I do now...? What should I say...?'_ she thought awkwardly.

Before she could decide on anything, her thoughts were blocked when the demon lord suddenly got up from the divan.

It was not until then that she realized that the lower body of Sesshoumaru was practically almost completely covered with red stains. Kagome widened her eyes. _'Is that...my blood...? He stayed by the bed all this time...?'_ she concluded surprised. _'Didn't he find me a nuisance...? But then...why...?'_

All the questions became forgotten when she reminded herself that he was about to leave the room.

"W-wait!" she halted him.

Sesshoumaru stopped walking near the door, but didn't turn to her.

"W-why did you" Kagome began but was cut off when the dog demon started to speak.

"You wouldn't let me heal the wounds of your torn wings and chain marks...why?" he asked, looking slightly over his shoulder to her.

Kagome gave him a puzzled look. _'Eh...?'_ She had opened her mouth to ask the demon lord what he meant by that but no sound came out of it.

But before she could make any sound, the demon lord began to walk away again, leaving her no chance to form any words.

* * *

Sorry for the abrupt stop. But my muses won't give me enough inspiration to continue. And I didn't want my readers to wait more than 20 days for one chapter...sorry!! I still hope you liked this chapter :). I'll try to update as soon as possible again, but I will be a bit busy this holiday since I have to work and all...not to mention that I want to relax a bit too. 

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Uninvited visitors**

-.-.-.-.-

Sorry, no teasers this time. I didn't have the time to finish the next chapter.

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**onee-sama:** big sister  
**Tenseiga: **healing sword given to Sesshoumaru by his father

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**HanyouAkita:** Thank you very much :). Thanks for being patient, I hope you liked this chapter as well.

**bad-girl4: **Sorry for letting you hang like that hehehe. Here's the next chapter, I hope you liked it.

**weird0: **I'm glad you loved it!

**Helba: **Hehehe yeah she did break it. But don't worry, this will be the last time Kagome trying to kill herself.

**dORIE: **Haha she will be able to do that very soon, be patient.

**saiyuki luver:** Thank you very much. The other stories that I've written are called "Life of a songmaiden", "An Elves' Child" and "Destiny".

**Camisha:** Hahaha yeah, I don't really need to many reviews for me to keep on writing. Because my principle is to finish what I've started so when I've started a story, I will definitely finish it.

**Shadow62: **Yeah I passed them, thank you very much for reviewing! :)

**silverstargazing:** Actually I went to Crete :). I started to write my chapter as soon as I came back, I really do hope you liked it.

**AngleCat HellFire: **Thank you so much, that's very encouraging.

**migele: **It's so good to know you liked An Elves' Child. As for Tenseiga, you really did see it coming didn't you? Hahaha.

**demonswty: **Don't worry and trust me. I won't let you down hehe :).

**drow goddess:** Thanks!!

**sorata-chan:** Hehehe I guess you found your answer by reading this chapter.

**Shiroi senshi: **Sorry for the cliffie, I sure hope you didn't see the end of this chapter as one hehe or else I would feel terribly guilty.

**stoictimer: **Thanks for reading my other story and reviewing it. I'm so happy to know you liked it! Thanks for reading this story too.

**DarkAngelB: **Nice long review, thanks!! It's really encouraging :). I'm happy to know I managed to write a different story than most of the stories.

**fullmoon: **Thanks!

**Inukamisashi: **Thanks!!!! I'll do my best!!

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Thank you very much! I had a really nice trip :). And sorry for the cliffhanger hehe.

**robin's-hope:** Pfew, I'm glad my readers could follow my explanation or I'll be really disappointed in my own explanation skills hahaha. Thanks for reading and reviewing the story! I'm so happy to know you like it.

**Madam Sorceress:** Sorry for the cliffie :). Thanks for reviewing and I hope you like this chapter!

Posted: 18 July 2004  
Last Edited: 25 July 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	7. Uninvited visitors

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hey everybody! I'm catching up with the within 10 days limit. Please be patient with me, I'm doing my best to update as soon as possible. The problem is that I have to work full-time the whole month August so there won't be much time left for writing fics. I'm sorry if I can't keep the 10 days promise. Anyway, I still hope you will continue to follow this story to its end :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts   
-- --: locations   
"...": spoken words   
-.-.-.-.-: time gap   
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Uninvited visitors**

**Previously:**  
"You wouldn't let me heal the wounds of your torn wings and chain marks...why?" he asked, looking slightly over his shoulder to her.

Kagome gave him a puzzled look. _'Eh...?'_ She had opened her mouth to ask the demon lord what he meant by that but no sound came out of it.

But before she could make any sound, the demon lord began to walk away again, leaving her no chance to form any words.

-.-.-.-.-

_'Why did he ask me that...?'_ Kagome pondered as she gazed upon her clean wrists. _'Did he try to heal me...?'_

"He did it, didn't he?" a voice suddenly spoke from the doorway.

It was Rin again, dressed in a fresh green yukata and smiling at her. "I can't believe Tenseiga actually managed to persuade Sesshoumaru-sama to heal you," she said.

Kagome gave her a puzzled look. "T-Tenseiga...?"

Rin nodded. "That's one of the two swords that Sesshoumaru-sama carries around his waist all the time."

"It's a healing sword. It's said to be able to heal any wounds, even fatal ones," she explained as she approached the bed.

Kagome watched how her serene expression suddenly saddened when she sat down on the edge of the bed.

A moment of silence took place before Rin suddenly spoke again.

"Who are you...where did you come from...?" Rin asked with a serious tone. "How did you do that? What did you do to affect him like that...make him look at you like that...?"

The last three sentences were almost inaudible to Kagome since they came out mumbling, but she didn't quite understand what she had meant by saying that.

"Rin-san...?" she called her name.

Rin snapped out of it and suddenly smiled again. "Oh, I'm sorry! I was just talking to myself," she said apologetically. "By the way, I heard that you like flowers very much."

Kagome give her a wide-eyed look. "How did you"

"Jaken told me that you sneaked out of your room earlier and ended up touching one of the flowers in the garden inside the castle," she explained. "Does your cheek still hurt?"

Kagome shook her head. "I think the Tenseiga healed it along with the gashes on my wrist."

Rin smiled. "Good!" And she grabbed Kagome's wrist. "Let's get you dressed up."

"B-but"

"No buts! You've been staying in this room for too long now, you'll need some fresh air!" Rin insisted and pulled her out of the bed.

-.-.- later -.-.-

Although she had already been in the courtyard before, Kagome still widened her eyes for the second time at its beauty as they arrived.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Rin asked.

Kagome nodded and took her first step into the garden on her brown sandals. She was now wearing a yellow yukata that had pink sakura blossoms embroidered on its edges.

A wide smile appeared on her face as she kicked off her sandals and placed her bare feet on the fresh green grass.

"You know..." Rin started, catching her attention again. "You look as if you have never seen these flowers and plants before...you're...not from here...are you?"

Kagome hesitated before shaking her head. "I'm...from a place very...very far away from here..." she replied.

"You're not human, are you?" Rin continued. "I saw those wounds on your back..."

Kagome's expression almost instantly saddened at this and she dropped her gaze. "I...I..."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up," Rin apologized. "I'm going to make some lunch for Sesshoumaru-sama right now, you can wait out here for me and enjoy the beauty of the courtyard until I come back."

With that said, she turned and left Kagome behind, alone in the large courtyard.

Kagome watched the girl disappear into a large doorway. _'I guess it's normal for her to ask me that..._'she thought to herself.

But she quickly shook it off again and turned to the garden fully. _'Well, since I was brought here to view the garden, I should take this opportunity to enjoy it thoroughly.'_ she decided inwardly and headed deeper into the garden.

-.-.-

A couple of minutes later, Kagome was practically dancing around between the bushes and trees.

She was indeed enjoying it very much. Although her eyes remained shut, she could still feel the presence of life around her and avoid bumping onto any trees or squashing any of the beautiful flowers.

From a distance, Kagome really resembled an angel, who was dancing gracefully in a divine garden.

Or so the person thought as it watched it all from the sky.

"Well well, I didn't expect the great lord of the Western Lands to keep such a beautiful angel from the skies in his castle," he smirked aloud.

Kagome froze at the sudden remark and her eyes shot open. _'Who was that?'_ she thought panicked as she shivered invisibly from the eerie presence she felt.

Slowly, she turned to the voice and raised her gaze up to the sky as she shaded her eyes from the morning sunrays.

It turned out to be a middle-aged man with long black curly hair and creepy crimson-colored eyes. His body was the most disgusting things Kagome had ever seen. There were green tentacles sticking out of his back, and his torso and arms were covered with a strange gray armor that seemed to have a life of its own.

The man was grinning at her.

Kagome widened her eyes and quickly took several steps backwards on her bare feet when she saw that the man was decreasing his altitude and floating towards her. _'W-who is this man...? What is this cold and creepy feeling...why am I...so...afraid...?' _she asked herself inwardly.

-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru was sitting on a windowsill in his study. He had finally gotten rid of all the blood on his clothes and hands, but there was still something bothering the Taiyoukai.

He couldn't stop wondering why Tenseiga didn't heal the chain marks on her wrists and the wounds on her back.

Maybe the powerful healing fang his father gave him wasn't so powerful at all. But he quickly shook off that thought. _'It's the girl who refuses to be healed...but why...?' _

He remembered what she said on the night she tried to kill herself.

_"Don't you understand? I'm a disgrace!! I've disobeyed my mother and lost my wings! I don't deserve to be the seventh princess of Celes!! I'm a nuisance!! I don't deserve to live!! I should have died back then!!"_

_'She said she can't go back...but that doesn't mean she doesn't want to go back. Plus, she'll need her wings to do that...'_ he mused.

"Hmpf," he suddenly snorted. "They will come and get her eventually, so why bother myself with such trivial thoughts?"

Suddenly, a very familiar scent caught the demon lord's nose and he immediately jumped up from the windowsill.

At that moment, Rin entered his study with a tray filled with food in her hands. "Sesshoumaru-sama? I broughtw-what's wrong?" she asked, noticing the serious expression on the Taiyoukai's face.

Sesshoumaru turned to Rin and narrowed his eyes when he found nobody besides her. "Where is she?"

"She...? You mean Kagome? I left her in the courtyard and told her to wait for me until I have brought you your l" Rin explained but was abruptly cut off when the demon lord pushed her aside and dashed out of the room.

Rin lost her balance and fell to the floor with the food spreading all over the grand carpet.

= CLATTER =

"S-Sesshoumaru-sama!" she called out to him but wasn't spared a glance as Sesshoumaru disappeared around the corner within a blink of an eye.

-.-.-.-.-

When Sesshoumaru arrived at the courtyard, he was enraged by what he saw.

It was indeed the bastard Naraku who had dared to enter his castle. But what agitated him even more was the fact that he was holding one of the girl's wrists and got her cornered against one of the walls surrounding the garden.

Blinded by anger, Sesshoumaru pulled out Toukijin and sent a blue blade of light towards Naraku.

Naraku felt the incoming attack and jumped away fast enough. Unfortunately it didn't count for Kagome, who still had her arm stretched out and didn't retract it on time.

"Arck!!" Kagome cried out of pain and held her bleeding lower arm.

Sesshoumaru almost instantly cursed himself for such a reckless act but knew he had to deal with the consequences later since there was no time for regret at the moment.

He quickly jumped into the air and landed between the hanyou and the girl. "Leave," he ordered with a low voice as he shot a death glare at Naraku.

"My my...wasn't keeping the Shikon shard your way of inviting me to your castle?" Naraku grinned.

"You won't be getting the shard today, now leave," the dog demon growled.

Naraku smirked in reply. "Oh? Well, I've changed my mind now. You see...another treasure in your possession has caught my attention today," he said as his eyes traveled to Kagome, who stood behind the dog demon.

Sesshoumaru saw where the hanyou was looking and growled. "Why are you still here? Go back into the castle."

This time, Kagome became angry. "Well excuse me for being injured! No thanks to you!" she spat.

"Go! Or I will injure your other arm as well!" Sesshoumaru threatened without turning around to her.

"Why did you save me with your sword if you won't even hesitated to injure me like this? You could just end my life right here right now!" Kagome argued.

Finally, Sesshoumaru turned to her fully with a very annoyed look on his face.

But before he could give her a piece of his mind, a life-threatening object moved in the peripheral area of the dog demon's eyes, catching his attention.

It turned out to be one of Naraku's tentacles and it was moving in to them at a very high speed.

-.-.-

Kagome had expected an angry reply from the demon lord, but what actually happened came totally unexpected.

Sesshoumaru suddenly grabbed her shoulders and pulled her to him as he turned around. The next thing she knew was hearing the sound of armor being broken and feeling how the grip on her shoulders tightened.

Kagome could hear how the breathing of the dog demon became soft pants and she slightly pulled away from his protective embrace. She widened her eyes when she realized what had happened.

She watched horrified how the tip of a green tentacle was being pulled back from the demon lord's stomach, leaving a hole behind, which was starting to bleed immensely.

As soon as the tentacle left his body, Sesshoumaru collapsed to his knees with his left arm covering his injury.

_'H-he protected me from the attack...!?'_ Kagome realized shocked. "S-Sesshoumaru-sama!" she called his name and knelt down in front of the demon lord.

"Return...to the castle...go..." the Taiyoukai ordered with a mouth filled with blood and pushed her aside, revealing a very arrogant Naraku standing in his line of vision.

"Who would have thought that the great Sesshoumaru would get himself lethally wounded in order to protect a girl," he chuckled, retracting his tentacle to his side. "I wonder how you are going to deflect my next attack with the state you're in..."

"Die!!!" he cried and sent a large stream of dark purple gas towards Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes as his vision started to fail him. _'Is this...the end of me...the lord of the Western Lands...?'_ he thought ironically.

He was totally surprised when he saw a sudden flash of raven-black. When he dropped his gaze, he realized that the girl was holding onto his haori and burying her head into his chest. "W-what are you" he began with a hoarse voice but was cut off when she suddenly started to apologize.

"It's all my fault!! I'm sorry!! Don't leave me behind!!" she cried in his chest.

Sesshoumaru wanted to push her away, but realized that the incoming danger was already too close to avoid.

"Stupid girl," were the only words he muttered as he looked down at the girl once again.

-.-.-.-.-

Kagome slowly pulled away when she heard the demon lord mutter something and looked upwards, only to meet two beautiful golden eyes that were looking back at her.

It was then that Kagome noticed something different in the way he looked at her. It wasn't the normal icy glare or stoic look that the dog demon was famous of. No, it was different. It was softer...almost gentle if you had to put it into words.

Then Kagome suddenly remembered what Rin said before.

_"How did you do that? What did you do to affect him like that...make him look at you like that...?"_

Her grip on the demon lord's haori suddenly tightened and she leaned her head onto his chest once again. _'I don't want to die!! I...don't want him to die!!'_ she screamed in her mind.

"I want to live!!!" she cried in his chest.

Kagome squeezed her eyes shut as she repeated the same thought over and over again.

Suddenly she felt a pulse from an unknown source.

= PULSE =

_'What was that?'_ she thought puzzled. But then she decided that it wasn't the moment to analyze some strange pulse.

Patiently, she waited for the dark energy to reach them. But nothing came.

Kagome slowly opened her eyes again. _'Huh?'_

She and Sesshoumaru were still standing near one of the castle walls in the courtyard, unharmed. Kagome eyes darted around and realized that a blue transparent barrier surrounded the both of them.

Her gaze then shifted to Naraku, who had an annoyed look on his face.

But then a smirk appeared on his face. "You were lucky this time. I will definitely come back for you!" he chuckled. "You better prepare yourself because next time, there won't be a dog demon to save you anymore!" [AN: He's saying that Sesshoumaru will die from the poisonous injury he inflicted on his body.]

With that said, Naraku rose from the ground and disappeared into the skies.

Kagome wanted to make a disgusted face but didn't get the chance to when the felt an increasing weight leaning on her from the front.

_'Sesshoumaru-sama?!'_ she thought alarmed and quickly turned to the demon lord. She watched how he closed his eyes and started to lose consciousness.

Unable to put up with the full weight of the Taiyoukai, Kagome fell onto the grass with him.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!!" a shocked voice cried from a distance.

It was Rin.

She ran to Kagome's side and knelt down. "What happened!?" she asked wide-eyed.

Before Kagome could even open her mouth to answer, the girl already spoke again. "Explain to me later. We have to get Sesshoumaru-sama to his chamber first!"

Kagome nodded and together, they lifted the dog demon from the grass, each of them supporting one shoulder.

And carefully, they brought Sesshoumaru back to his chamber.

-.-

It was a space twice as big as Kagome's. The walls were white as snow and the floor was graced with a soft burgundy carpet.

Imagine yourself at the doorway and the door to the balcony, together with the windows, would be located in the wall to your left. A huge wardrobe could be seen standing against the wall on your right and a king-size bed would be standing at the far end of the chamber in front of you. A small brown nightstand was present next tot he bed, together with a small table and a pair of armchairs.

After putting Sesshoumaru on his huge white bed, Rin ran out of the room again, leaving Kagome behind with the unconscious Taiyoukai.

Her eyes never left the demon lord after the incident. Although he looked as though he was sleeping, the sweat drops on his forehead, which seemed like shimmering stars around the crescent moon-mark, and the restless respiration proved otherwise.

_'He's in pain...'_ Kagome thought worried as her eyes traveled to the red part of his outfit.

Carefully, she removed the broken armor and pushed aside the bloody fabric, revealing a nasty wound just below the stomach. There was also some strange dark purple liquid plastered against the edges of the hole.

_'Is this...poison...?'_ Kagome wondered, narrowing her eyes. _'Whatever it is...it's preventing the wound from healing and the bleeding to stop.'_

_'It's all my fault...'_ she blamed herself, dropping her face. _'If only I had gone back into the castle like he told me to...'_

_'Isn't there anything I can do for him?'_

Suddenly, she could feel a pulse again.

= PULSE =

Kagome widened her eyes of surprise. _'It's the same feeling again...!'_ But this time the pulse seemed stronger than before.

Kagome searched around for its source and her eyes fell on a sheathed sword that was attached to Sesshoumaru's waist with the yellow sash. _'Tenseiga...?'_ she recalled how Rin called the sword that the demon lord used to heal the wounds of her suicidal attempt. She bowed over Sesshoumaru's body and slowly reached out to touch it.

She retracted her hand instinctively out of shock when the sword pulsated at her touch.

= PULSE =

_'You want me to use you on your master...?'_ she asked with her thoughts.

= PULSE =

It was as if the fang responded to her thoughts.

Kagome swallowed hard and reached out for the hilt of Tenseiga.

As if the sword was happy to be used on its injured master, it pulsated again when Kagome began to pull it out from its dark-brown sheath.

_'It's really heavy...'_ she though as she barely managed to keep it in the air. Not to mention she was injured at her arm of Toukijin's attack.

Kagome raised the sword into the air. _'All right...all I have to do is swing it once...right?'_

= PULSE =

Right after the pulse, a strange light blue cloud started to envelope the blade of the sword. At the same time, Kagome felt as if her strength was being sucked out of her body.

_'Here goes nothing!!'_ she bit her lower lip and swung Tenseiga over Sesshoumaru's body, using all her strength and ignoring the stinging pain coming from her lower arm.

After swinging the fang, Kagome immediately let it fall onto the carpet and collapsed to her knees.

= THUD =

_'Why is my body so weak all of a sudden...?' _Kagome thought exhausted. But then she reminded herself of something more important. She quickly pulled herself closer to the bed and pushed herself up with her elbows on the bedside.

She let out a sigh in relief when she saw no wound in his stomach anymore. Even the dark purple liquid and the blood on his garment and body had vanished without a trace.

"Yokatta..." she said with a weak smile, which sounded more like a whisper because of the exhaustion.

And before she knew it, she had let herself fall on top of Sesshoumaru's bare chest and into a deep slumber.

-.-.-.-.-

A couple of minutes later, Rin came back running with a basket filled with bottles and cloths.

She came to an abrupt stop when she saw that the injuries on Sesshoumaru's body had completely disappeared.. But what shocked her even more was the scene altogether.

The unsheathed Tenseiga was lying on the carpet. The wound in the Taiyoukai's lower torso and all of the blood were gone and Kagome was sleeping like a rose with her head resting on Sesshoumaru's chest and her lower body on the floor.

Rin set the basket on the floor and slowly approached the bed. _'What on Earth happened here...?'_ she thought bewildered.

Her eyes traveled to Kagome and narrowed with suspicion. _'What have you done...??'_ she asked in her mind and reached out her hands towards her shoulders.

"Rin," his low voice spoke, instantly making her retract her arms and stand up straight.

"S-Sesshoumaru-sama! My God, I'm so glad you're okay," Rin said happily and relieved. "I thought you were"

"Enough," Sesshoumaru cut her off with an exhausted expression. "Leave me."

"But what of Kagome?" she asked puzzled.

Her answer was an annoyed look coming from the demon lord.

"I understand Sesshoumaru-sama. Please rest well," she acknowledged reluctantly and made her way to the exit.

-.-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru watched the door close and shifted his gaze to the girl who was sleeping on top of his chest.

Her face was facing him, giving him the opportunity to study her facial features from a closer perspective.

_'So your name is Kagome huh?'_ he thought. After studying a short moment, he slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position on the bed.

His eyes immediately fell on his unsheathed sword on the floor and widened. _'She used Tenseiga on me?!?'_ he thought disbelievingly.

Sesshoumaru turned to the girl again. This time he realized that almost the entire lower part of her yellow yukata was stained with blood...his blood.

The entire scene was familiar. Only this time, the one who played the role of the healer was playing the roler of the injured one instead. _'Who would have thought that there is someone else who could use the powers of my father's sword.'_ he smirked inwardly.

This girl sleeping on his lap was truly starting to amuse him greatly.

He could vaguely remember how the girl clutched onto his haori and exclaimed that she had the desire to live.

_'Tenseiga reacted to her will to live and erected a barrier to protect her as well...hmm...'_ he mused.

But what he found most surprising was the fact that Kagome had actually placed herself between him and the bastard to shield him from the miasma-attack.

Which also reminded him of his reckless behavior before that ended up injuring her arm instead of Naraku.

Sesshoumaru lifted up her injured arm and caressed the skin around the shallow gash as he studied the seriousness of the wound.

Without further thinking, Sesshoumaru turned his attention to Tenseiga on the floor and stretched out his hand. "Come Tenseiga."

In a split second, the sword flew directly into the demon lord's hand.

Carefully, Sesshoumaru hovered its blade over Kagome's lower arm once. Much to his relief, the gash disappeared a short moment later.

_'Now...we're even...'_ he thought and put Tenseiga on the bed next to him.

Just when the demon lord wanted to look at her sleeping face a little bit longer, an extremely familiar scent caught his attention.

A scowl appeared on Sesshoumaru's face and he bared his fangs.

_'Bad timing, Inuyasha...'_

* * *

Oehh...more uninvited guests...how will Sesshoumaru take care of this? This chapter is really long compared to the other ones, I hope you liked it!! Please leave a review behind to tell me what you think ne? Thanks!!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Hidden power and exposed jealousy**

-.-.-.-.-

I can't give you the exact content of the next chapter, but I can tell you a rough summary :). Here we go!

Inuyasha traced Naraku's scent to Sesshoumaru's castle and goes there uninvited together with Kikyou (not Kagome's sister!!). Eventually, the argument becomes a fight between the half-brothers, until a pack of saimyoushou suddenly caught the demon lord's attention. With that he realizes that Kagome is in danger and pulls away from the fight, hoping to arrive at his own chamber in time.

The main question is...how did Naraku know the location of the sleeping Kagome?

Please look forward to the next exciting chapter!!

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**Taiyoukai:** big demon  
**yokatta:** rougly means 'I'm glad'

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**hellokitty-sayhello: **Thanks for reviewing and telling me about the spelling mistakes. I'll be sure to remember them for the coming chapters!

**robin's-hope:** I hope this chapter came soon enough and was long enough hehe, took me a lot of time to finish it :).

**Reader:** Don't worry, I'm not intending to quit writing this story hehe. Thanks for reviewing! As for Kagome's wings, sorry can't reveal anything about that yet hehehe, I can only tell you that they won't grow back on their own. And as you have already noticed, Inuyasha will appear in the next chapter :). Kikyou's wedding is a bit trivial, I'm not planning to mention it greatly throughout the story, but thanks for reminding me that I haven't mentioned the moon-people for a while now hahaha.

**Mistress Koishii: **Happy birthday (belated)!!!

**kang: **Thanks!

**demonswty:** Thanks!! I'll update as soon as possible!

**Salster: **You guessed it right with your first two guesses! Bravo! I watched sleepless in seattle a couple of times and it's still very nice and romantic haha. Thanks for reviewing again!

**Shadow62: **Thank you very much! I hope you liked this chapter as well!

**bad-girl4: **Hmm, you're very close to the answer to the question of the next chapter hehe. Kagome's wings won't grow back on their own, that's the only thing I can reveal right now hehe.

**Inukamisashi: **I will!!

**Guardian-of-the-night: **How long this story will be? I think 20 chapters at maximum, but I'm not really sure hehe. Thanks for reading my other stories! I'm glad you liked them and like this story so far!

**Shadow-Demon14: **Don't worry about that :). Reviewing once in a while is better than not reviewing at all, right? I'm sorry to hear that you're grounded but since you could still go online when your parents aren't home, it's cool huh? haha.

**Kayrin: **Welcome back! The summaries are really the toughest part of the story since won't give you enough space to write a lot hehe, at least, that's what I think. I'm happy to know that you liked the summary and the story so far! Thanks for reviewing!

**silverstargazing: **Yeah it's been a while, but I'm back!! I'm glad you haven't forgotten about me :). Thanks for reviewing!!

**tsuyoi-84: **Thank you very much. I'm very happy to hear that from a reader. I should be the one thanking you actually :).

**Madam Sorceress: **Thanks! Well, I have to start somewhere if I want the two to be together, right? Hahaha.

**Tenshi Youkai no Yugure:** I'm happy to hear that! Thanks!

**CryingDeath: **Had enough fluffiness yet? Haha, if not, then trust me and wait patiently :).

**Dragon of Sesshomaru: **Thank you very much. The title of the chinese fairytale is called "Ngauw Long Tjik Leu". In English, it literally means "The Cow-boy and the Sewing-girl".

Posted: 25 July 2004  
Last Edited: 25 July 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	8. Hidden power and exposed jealousy

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Here I am again! Nothing much to say really, that's why...enjoy reading!!

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts   
-- --: locations   
"...": spoken words   
-.-.-.-.-: time gap   
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Hidden power and exposed jealousy**

**Previously:**  
Carefully, Sesshoumaru hovered its blade over Kagome's lower arm once. Much to his relief, the gash disappeared a short moment later.

_'Now...we're even...'_ he thought and put Tenseiga on the bed next to him.

Just when the demon lord wanted to look at her sleeping face a little bit longer, an extremely familiar scent caught his attention.

A scowl appeared on Sesshoumaru's face and he bared his fangs.

_'Bad timing, Inuyasha...'_

-.-.-.-.-.-

Without further thinking, Sesshoumaru pulled Kagome up and put her fully on top of his bed while he climbed off of it.

He quickly put Tenseiga back into its sheath and exited the chamber.

"Sesshoumaru!! I know you're here! Come out or I'll tear down your castle!!" a voice Sesshoumaru knew all too well sounded from the castle courtyard.

A scowl appeared on the Taiyoukai's face as he arrived at the garden.

There he was, his moronic half-brother.

Always wearing that filthy red fire-rat's fur that their father gave to that human mother of his.

It bothered him that the powerful Tetsusaiga was still hanging around the hanyou's waist. It bothered him even more that they shared the same silver hair and gold-amber eyes.

But what angered the demon lord the most was that the hanyou had dared to bring that undead miko of his along.

"Took you long enough!" the silver-haired intruder snarled. "Spill it Sesshoumaru, where it that bastard Naraku!?"

Sesshoumaru raised a brow in response, as he was not intending to answer any of his questions.

"Don't play dumb! I can even smell the bastard on you!!" Inuyasha growled, gripping the hilt of his sword.

The miko, always dressed in her red and white priestess' outfit, kept herself at the background with a stoic expression. Although she seemed calm, she definitely looked as if she could fire one of her purifying arrows any minute, using the bow that she was carrying around her shoulder.

Sesshoumaru couldn't help but realize how much this miko resembled the winged one, who coincidentally had the same name now that he thought about it. He knew they had to be two different individuals but the similarities of their looks and names were just too scary for words.

"What the hell are you looking at?!" the hanyou caught his attention again. "One last time, where is Naraku?!"

"Hmpf," Sesshoumaru snorted. "Do you really think I would tell you and have him killed by your hands? Although I highly doubt that you could ever do that. Don't be foolish my little brother, this Sesshoumaru still has a score to settle with him."

Inuyasha scowled and pulled out Tetsusaiga. "You asked for it!!"

The demon lord smirked. "How many times do I have to beat you to make you realize that you cannot win from your brother I?" he said as he summoned his green whip and sent it flying towards his half-brother.

Inuyasha managed to jump away in time, revealing the miko who had taken a fighting stance with a notched arrow on her long bow.

She fired it immediately after Inuyasha jumped away.

= FWIIISSHHHHH =

Sesshoumaru widened his eyes as he watched how the arrow, which was making its way towards him now, purified his whip.

Suddenly he felt a pulse coming from the side of his waist and he looked at one of his swords. _'Ttenseiga?' _he thought surprised.

The next thing he knew, he was being surrounded by a barrier that shared the same color as the aura around the purifying arrow, which could be piercing his body any second now.

Much to the demon lord's surprise, the miko's arrow got bounced off when it touched the barrier around him.

Even the miko herself widened her eyes at this. "Impossible..." she muttered disbelievingly as she lowered her bow to the floor.

"What the...?!" Inuyasha cried. "Sesshoumaru! There's no way father's sword could possess the power to deflect a purifying arrow such as Kikyou's! What have you done to it? How did you get such power?!"

But Sesshoumaru didn't reply, he could only look at the pulsating Tenseiga around his waist. He, too, was unable to solve this riddle.

It didn't take very long before something else caught his attention again.

Sesshoumaru widened his eyes. _'Saimyoushou!!'_

_'Which means...Naraku is around here somewhere!!'_ he concluded alarmed. He didn't notice it before since the new intruders distracted him, but the scent of Naraku was coming from inside his castle.

Sesshoumaru quickly turned around and dashed into the castle.

"Sesshoumaru!! You're not getting away!!" the voice of his half-brother echoed through the halls.

But he ignored it. The Taiyoukai's mind was only set on the possibility of Kagome being in grave danger in her sleeping state.

Within second, he arrived at the doors to his own chamber. He kicked the doors open without second thought and frowned at the sight before him.

Naraku was standing next to the bed and holding a very familiar figure in his arms.

Sesshoumaru's blood boiled inside as he stepped into the room. "Kisama...get your filthy hands off of her," he growled.

"Sesshoumaru...have you come to spoil the fun again? Too bad you weren't poisoned to though by my miasma. I guess the Goddess of Death was too merciful huh?" Naraku smirked as he gathered Kagome in his arms and walked away from the bed.

At the same time, Inuyasha and Kikyou arrived at the scene. "Naraku!! You bastard!! I knew you had to be here!!" Inuyasha cried, holding his Tetsusaiga ready. "You're not getting away this time!"

"Well well, I didn't expect such a happy reunion," Naraku chuckled, as he looked at the girl in his arms. "Have you all come to celebrate that I have discovered the weak point of the great Sesshoumaru?"

Inuyasha raised a brow as he turned to Sesshoumaru. "What weak point? Sesshoumaru, what is he talking about?" Only to witness the most annoyed look on his half-brother's face he had ever seen. "Sesshoumaru?" he called out to him again.

"Let her go," was the demon lord's only response.

"What if I don't want to? As long as this angel stays by my side, you wouldn't dare to lay a finger on me again...would you?" Naraku grinned evilly.

Both Inuyasha and Kikyou turned fully to Sesshoumaru now, both giving him an expectant look.

But Sesshoumaru remained calm. "Hmpf. Do you really think this Sesshoumaru would give up the opportunity to kill you just because of a mere girl?"

Naraku laughed. "I wouldn't dare to assume that if we were talking about the human girl, but this girl is different...isn't that right? O great lord of the Western Lands?"

Although Sesshoumaru remained composed on the outside, he was practically boiling with anger within. _'I will not have someone mock me like that!!!'_ he thought furiously as he readied himself to attack Naraku.

But he snapped out of it when a horrible cry filled the chamber.

It was Naraku's voice.

The demon lord turned to the voice and widened his eyes.

The bastard was still holding the girl in his arms but something was different. The sleeping girl seemed to be glowing a faint purplish light and there were smoke starting to arise from the places where the hanyou was touching her.

"AAARRRGHHHH!!!" Naraku winced aloud in pain and quickly threw the girl in his arms away.

Sesshoumaru immediately dashed forward and caught her before she hit the floor.

"Y-you damn girl!!!" Naraku growled as he looked at his own hands, which looked as if they were put into burning flames for several hours.

The demon lord looked at the girl in his arms and checked for any injuries. Mindlessly, he formed her name with his lips for the very first time.

"Kagome."

As if responding to her own name, Kagome's eyes slowly fluttered open.

She blinked several times. "S-Sesshoumaru-sama...?"

Kagome slowly scanned her surroundings. _'What happened...?'_ she thought confused as her eyes drifted towards Inuyasha.

_'That man...looks just like Sesshoumaru-sama..._' Then her eyes shifted to the woman standing beside him and widened. _'Kikyou onee-sama?!? Chigau...she's not her...but how'_ she thought when she felt no life coming from the woman who strongly resembled her dear sister.

Her train of thoughts crashed when she saw Naraku standing not very far away from her and she instinctively moved closer to Sesshoumaru. _'What is he doing here!?'_

"Kagome."

Kagome snapped out of it and quickly looked up at Sesshoumaru. _'Did he...just call me by my n'_

"Can you stand?" he asked, cutting off her thoughts.

Kagome slightly blushed when she realized in who's arms she laid and nodded slightly.

Carefully, Sesshoumaru lowered his arm that was supporting her knees and set the girl on her feet. But the other arm, which was draped around her shoulders, never left her and was holding her protectively against him.

The demon lord instinctively pulled out a sword with his free hand and growled. "You have bothered this Sesshoumaru long enough. Now you will die!!!"

With that, he swung his sword at Naraku, sending a purplish blade of light towards him.

Naraku's eyes widened. _'This...this is purifying power!!'_ he realized shocked.

"AAAAAAAAAAAARRRCCCKKKK!!!!" he cried out in pain as the blade of light hit him straight on.

Within seconds, Naraku's entire body became purified, leaving a mere wooden doll behind.

_'Hmpf...kugutsu huh?'_ Sesshoumaru thought annoyed.

Suddenly, Naraku's voice echoed through the chamber. "Kukuku, so Sesshoumaru, I see you have found yourself a miko as well huh? Just like your dear half-brother Inuyasha..." the voice laughed. "By the way, did it ever cross your mind that the Shikon no Tama grants the holder the power to do anything? Like...healing the wounds of our pretty angel here for example, kukuku."

Sesshoumaru's ears twitched.

"But you better not make the angel jealous...having one girl betraying her lord os already disgraceful enough, kukuku."

After the last sentence, Naraku's presence vanished completely.

A moment of silence took place and Sesshoumaru dropped his gaze to the girl in his embrace, only to find her looking back at him.

Their gazes were rudely broken again as Inuyasha decided to vent his frustration. "Sesshoumaru!! What the hell is going on here?! What have you done with Tenseiga!?!?"

The demon lord turned to the hanyou with an annoyed look on his face. "I do not know what you are talking about," he replied coolly.

Inuyasha scowled. "Don't tell me you didn't realize that you were using Tenseiga on Naraku earlier! It purified him completely while it's supposed to be a healing fang!!"

Sesshoumaru raised a brow and looked at his clawed hand. The hanyou was talking the truth. He had never intended to use Tenseiga in the fight, yet Tenseiga was the sword he was holding in his hand right now.

_'How is this possible...??'_ he thought bewildered as he recalled the barrier that repelled the miko's purifying arrow earlier. _'It has definitely got to do with Tenseiga, but the sword never showed such power until recently.'_ he concluded as his eyes shifted back to Kagome. _'Until you'_

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt an incoming danger.

= FWWWIIISSHHHHH =

It turned out to be an arrow and surprisingly enough, it was not aiming for the demon lord himself, but at the girl in his arms.

Sesshoumaru quickly reacted to this and stopped the arrow by catching it between his fore and middle finger before it hit Kagome. He immediately shot a glare of death at the one who shot it.

She was smirking at the Taiyoukai. "How foolish of you to catch my powerful purifying arrow," she chuckled. "You should have let me kill the girl, now your hand will be purified instead."

Sesshoumaru scowled while looking down at the glowing arrow, which was starting to cause a burning feeling in his hand.

= PSSHHHHRRRT =

"You wench," he cursed with a low growl.

But suddenly, a strange cold and easing gentleness replaced the burning pain and the demon lord quickly looked at his hand again. He realized that there was suddenly another hand holding his, it was Kagome's hand.

She was looking at him with a worried expression. "Sesshoumaru-sama, are you okay?"

Sesshoumaru didn't say anything; instead, he just looked at his clawed hand beneath hers, which was being enveloped by a strange purplish light.

The purifying arrow between his fingers suddenly melted and the burning wounds healed within seconds.

When the light faded after doing its work, Sesshoumaru turned to Kagome again. "You" he began, but was rudely interrupted again.

"What the hell are you..." The voice belonged to the undead miko, who had a very unpleasant look on her face.

Inuyasha turned to Kikyou with a puzzled expression. "Kikyou, what are you trying to do??"

Kagome widened her eyes. _'This woman's name is Kikyou too???!' _

She cringed when the woman suddenly pointed at her. "That girl is no human!! There is no way a human could possess a holy power greater than mine!" she stated angrily. "Speak up girl or I won't hesitate to pierce your heart with my arrows!!"

Kagome clasped Sesshoumaru's haori. _'Why is she doing this? I haven't done anything to her...'_ she thought frustrated.

-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru could sense the increasing fear coming from the girl. His grip around her shoulder tightened to assure her of her safety and much to his relief, the girl began to relax a little again.

"Inuyasha, you better shut that wench of yours up and leave before I tear her apart," the demon lord threatened, readying his Tenseiga.

Inuyasha turned to Kikyou. "Kikyou, we better go and start looking for the real Naraku. There's no point in staying here," he suggested.

Kikyou scowled but eventually lowered her bow and turned to leave. And Inuyasha followed her.

Without saying anything, Sesshoumaru released the girl from his embrace and turned to leave.

"Wait! Where are you going?" she asked and wanted to follow but as soon as she took her first step, she collapsed to her knees.

"You are still too exhausted," he told her as he paused for a minute. "Do not worry, I will come back," he added and disappeared into the hallway.

-.-.-.-

As much as he wanted to ask the girl about her mysterious powers, Sesshoumaru had something more important to do first.

Yes, what Naraku said before he disappeared had disturbed him greatly.

_"But you better not make the angel jealous...having one girl betraying her lord is already disgraceful enough..."_

Now that he thought about it, there were several things Naraku knew about while he shouldn't. With his keen youkai senses there was absolutely no chance those hideous bugs could've gathered information about things inside his castle beyond his knowledge.

Unless...

Sesshoumaru shook off the thought and continued his way to the quarters of the human girl. There was no use making conclusions before asking her himself.

-.-.-

Rin was coming her long wavy black hair in front of a wide mirror when Sesshoumaru opened her door silently. Her room was not much different than Kagome's, except for the locations of the door and windows.

Sesshoumaru silently walked closer to her until he was standing a couple of feet away from her. "Rin."

Rin almost jumped up of shock and turned around. "Oh Sesshoumaru-sama! You startled me!" she gasped. "Is there something wring?" she asked.

The demon lord didn't say anything; he just walked over to one of the windows and gazed at the bright green landscape beneath the late afternoon sun.

After receiving no reply, Rin shrugged and turned to the mirror again.

"So...how is Kagome?" she suddenly asked out of the blue.

Sesshoumaru's ears twitched and finally, he decided not to withhold the questioning anymore. "How did Naraku find out?" he asked with a calm voice.

"Find out about what?" Rin replied nonchalantly without looking away from her reflection in the mirror.

At that moment, something snapped inside Sesshoumaru.

The one second, he was staring calmly at the horizon beyond the glass and the next, he was already pinning the human girl against a nearby wall with his clawed hand around her throat.

"Do NOT play dumb in front of this Sesshoumaru!" he growled with his eyes never looking away from her dark brown ones.

This time, Rin really became scared. "I-I'm sorry Sesshoumaru-sama! I got carried away...please forgive me!!!" she confessed with regret filling her eyes.

Sesshoumaru didn't increase the pressure on her throat, but they remained silent like that for a short moment. The only sound in the chamber was the soft panting of the scared Rin.

Eventually, Sesshoumaru let go of Rin and stepped away.

Rin's knees felt weak all of a sudden and she collapsed to the floor with her back still leaning against the wall. She held her throat and could only stare at Sesshoumaru's feet with fear and regret.

"This Sesshoumaru will not tolerate a second time," he warned with a low growl. "If there should be a next time, I will NOT hesitate to end your life."

After he said that, he turned and left her alone in her chamber.

-.-

As Sesshoumaru took the direction towards his own chamber, he could hear a soft weeping sound coming from behind him.

The demon lord let out a sigh as he silently continued his promenade through the empty halls.

* * *

Quite unbelievable huh? She was so cute and innocent in the series...and yet. But then again, she never had any competition...and now that she's an adult...and suddenly her Sesshoumaru-sama isn't only hers anymore...well fill in the rest if you like :). Not very long compared to the previous chapter but I still hope you have enjoyed reading this chapter! Please look forward to the next one!!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Amending relations**

-.-.-.-.-

In the next chapter, we will see some change in the relationship between our two main characters :). Though it's not a BIG change since this story still has to be a bit realistic haha, but I will not let you down!

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**Taiyoukai:** big demon  
**miko: **priestess  
**kisama:** a VERY rude way to say 'you'  
**chigau:** it's different/not like that  
**kugutsu: **demon puppet

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**silverstargazing: **I'm glad you liked the chapter :). I hope this chapter was just as enjoyable as well.

**demonswty:** Thanks! Well, Kagome will not have any extra powers besides the purifying power after losing her wings.

**Lady Kaela: **Thank you very much! I'll update as soon as possible!

**Shadow-Demon14:** That's wonderful news!! Thanks for reviewing, I'm glad you liked it!

**robin's-hope: **Thanks thanks!! Yeah poor Rin, but it's quite refreshing to suddenly transform a "good guy" from the series into a "bad buy" hehe. Hmm if I'm not mistaking, I mentioned that Rin was about 23 years old...yeah 23 :) so she's older than Kagome. And euhm, Kikyou is already in it as you can see hehehe. About the rest, I haven't found a suitable role for them yet. Don't know if I'll ever find them but honestly I like it like this already :).

**Dragon of Sesshomaru: **Thanks! Have I updated soon enough?

**Why?What?Shutup: **Thank you very much :). I'm glad you didn't miss out this story of mine hihihi.

**atashi-wa-Yume: **Hahaha, I'm happy to hear you like the story so far! Thanks for reviewing!

**lunathelune: **Thanks!!

**drow goddess:** Thank you!! I hope you're happy with the pace I'm updating with :).

**AngleCat HellFire: **Thanks! Look forward to the next chapter too ne?

**stoictimer:** Hmm well, the relationship between them in the series was vague so I thought it would be best to leave it that way. But it's clear enough that Rin has special feeling for Sesshoumaru (enough to betray him because of jealousy hehe). Thanks for reviewing by the way!

**Kayrin:** Hehehe, well, I guess this chapter has satisfied your curiosity right?

**bad-girl4: **Hahaha, I'll be waiting for you to guess the right answer then! Thanks for reviewing!

**kagomesirene: **Thank you very much! And your suspicion was right! You are definitely not paranoid :).

**gimchi: **Thanks! And nope, making Inuyasha fall for Kagome would complicate things very much :) so I had decided not to do that hehe.

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Thanks! Yeah, I still have 2 other stories pending after I finished this one (did I mention that I'm really looking forward to writing the next one hehehe...oops...said to much again). I'm happy to hear that I've got a faithful reader hihi.

**DarkAngelB: **Hahaha, well it's okay, this review of yours was long too :). Thanks for reading and reviewing!

**INUGIRL: **I'll try to update once a week! Thanks for reviewing!

Posted: 30 July 2004  
Last Edited: 30 July 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	9. Amending relations

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hey guys! Sorry for not updating for a while, but it's still within 10 days so I didn't break the limit-rule (which I set up myself haha). Anyhow, I hope you will enjoy this chapter, although it's not a very long one and not with much "actions" in it :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
-- --: locations  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Amending relations**

**Previously:**  
As Sesshoumaru took the direction towards his own chamber; he could hear a soft weeping sound coming from behind him.

The demon lord let out a sigh as he silently continued his promenade through the empty halls.

-.-.- back at Sesshoumaru's chamber -.-.-

When Sesshoumaru arrived at his own chamber, he found that Kagome was already sleeping soundly on his king-size bed.

Silently, he approached the bedside and watched her calm expression.

"Silly girl, I told you that you were too exhausted," he whispered softly as he sat down next to her.

"S-Sesshoumaru...sama..." the girl suddenly murmured in her sleep. "Y-you're...back..."

As he watched her shoulders rise and fall with every breath she took, Sesshoumaru couldn't help but wonder. _'How did things become like this? Everything is changing because of your existence...why is that so?'_

_'What are you doing to this Sesshoumaru?'_ he asked with his thoughts.

His clawed hand slowly reached out to touch her face but stopped about an inch away from her cheek. He retracted his hand and quickly stood up again. _'What am I doing?'_ he scolded himself. _'This girl does not mean anything to me...her kin will come back for her soon. I cannot let myself be influenced and bothered by something that has already been determined...' _

_'I will not...'_ Without finishing his thoughts, he cut himself off and walked out of the room.

-.-.-.-.-

Kagome woke up next morning with the sun kissing her cheeks.

She yawned and pulled herself up to a sitting position. _'That's right...I fell asleep while waiting for Sesshoumaru-sama...'_ she thought while rubbing her eyes. _'I wonder where he is right now.'_

_'Where did he sleep las__t night since I occupied his bed...'_ she mused as she fumbled the white covers of his bed.

= KNOCK KNOCK =

"Come in," she responded. _'Sesshoumaru-sama?'_

Kagome was slightly disappointed to see that it was Rin at the doorway. She was wearing a plain green yukata with yellow flowers.

"Morning!" she greeted the human girl cheerfully.

Rin only nodded in reply. "Milord Sesshoumaru-sama wishes to have breakfast with you. I'm here to help you getting dressed."

Kagome blinked. _'...Eh? Breakfast with Sesshoumaru-sama?'_ she thought surprised.

As she was quite excited at hearing she was being invited to sit at the same table as the demon lord, she didn't realize that the face of the human girl had dropped a little.

_'I've been living with Sesshoumaru-sama for more than 15 years...yet he never asked me to have breakfast with him...' _she thought disappointed. _'It's not that I haven't tried it before...'_

[FLASHBACK]

"S-Sesshoumaru-sama?" Rin hesitated as she put down the last plate on the dining table in front of the demon lord, who seemed to be reading some documents.

"C-can I eat with you?" she asked hopefully.

The demon lord didn't reply or look up from his documents, but the optimistic Rin concluded that it was a 'yes' so she quickly ran into the kitchen again to prepare her own meal.

But when she came back with her own plate in her hands, she realized painfully that the demon lord has already finished everything and left the dining area.

That night, Rin had the most silent and saddest dinner she had ever had in her life.

[END FLASHBACK]

She gave Kagome an envious look. _'Why you...? Why did you come here in the first place? Things were just fine when you weren't around...'_ she thought selfishly.

The thought of Kagome affecting Sesshoumaru-sama more with every passing day was painful, but the threat she had received from the demon lord hurt even more.

_"This Sesshoumaru will not tolerate a second time...if there should be a next time, I will NOT hesitate to end your life."_

She hated to admit it, but she could not risk a second time anymore. _'I guess...loving a person...means you should let him go if he has found his own happiness and be happy for him...'_ she concluded unwillingly.

_'And I'm still allowed to stay here...that's not so bad...is it?'_

With that finishing thought, Rin snapped back into reality again before Kagome became aware that she was spacing out.

She eventually got her dressed in a soft blue yukata with white flowers embroidered on it here and there and led her to the dining area.

-.-.-.-

"Sesshoumaru-sama, Kagome is here," Rin announced with a polite bow and turned to leave.

Kagome watched her leave with a puzzled expression. _'Huh? She's not going to join us?'_

She wanted to halt her but was halted herself by the demon lord.

"Let her leave."

Kagome shrugged and walked deeper into the dining area. Her eyes darted around and scanned her surroundings.

It was a huge space reachable by three pairs of doors in three of the four enclosing walls. One pair definitely led to the kitchen, the other pair was connected to the hallway where Kagome's chamber was located and the hallway behind last pair remained unknown. The fourth wall, which was located from across the pair of doors where Kagome just came in, was decorated with long windows that had rectangular-shaped bottoms and oval-shaped tops.

Against some of the walls, low wooden cabinets could be seen with silver candleholders resting on top of them, along with some bowls filled with all kinds of colorful fruit-like objects unfamiliar to the girl from the moon.

She could already see the demon lord sitting at one end of the long oval-shaped table that was made of the most beautiful gray marble she had ever seen. He seemed to be reading some documents. Besides the grand wooden chair where Sesshoumaru was sitting on and the other one at the other end of the table there were six regular chairs standing at each side of the table.

Not quite sure where to be seated, Kagome just stood near the table and giving the demon lord an unsure look.

Without looking up from his documents, Sesshoumaru only moved his head slightly towards the nearest seat next to him.

And so, Kagome walked towards the same seat and sat down.

Not long after she sat down, Rin appeared again carrying large tray in her hands with two plates and glasses on it. She neatly placed each plate and glass in front of Sesshoumaru and Kagome, along with two pairs of forks, knives and cloths and then disappeared into the kitchen again.

Kagome's eyes followed the human girl until the demon lord suddenly spoke again.

"Eat," he said, again without looking up from his documents.

Kagome hesitated. _'A-am I allowed to begin before him...?'_ she thought. "I-itadakimasu..." she uttered meekly before picking up a fork and using it to put a small piece of round and red vegetable-like thing from her plate in her mouth.

_'This is delicious...!'_ she thought surprised as she chewed on it. _'I've never had anything like this before.'_

After a short moment, the demon lord finally put aside the papers and began to eat his own meal as well.

The breakfast went silently until Kagome finished everything on her plate and decided to speak again after wiping her mouth with the white cloth. "Ano...Sesshoumaru-sama?"

Sesshoumaru did not reply, but she knew she had caught his attention.

"I wanted to thank you...and I'm sorry..." she began.

Much to her surprise, the demon lord had stopped eating and was now looking at her with full attention.

Kagome dropped her gaze to her knees. "Thank you for saving my life again. Although I only woke up in the middle of the entire happening yesterday, but somehow I know I should be thanking Sesshoumaru-sama of all people that I'm still able to sit here and have this wonderful breakfast right now."

She took a short pause before looking up at the dog demon and continued. "And I'm sorry...I know I have caused you a lot of trouble ever since I've arrived at your castle," she continued. "It might be impudent of me to say this...but I am willing to work here at your castle as your servant or maid...until...until I" she swallowed her words when she realized that Sesshoumaru was looking at her with a surprised expression.

"O-or...maybe I'm...just your prisoner..." her voice faltered when she said the last sentence. _'Stupid Kagome, you made him angry again!'_ she smacked herself mentally as she cast her gaze downwards again.

Her attention was drawn again when the demon lord began to speak.

"This Sesshoumaru does not need any more servants or maids," was his short statement.

Kagome's face dropped. _'So...I'm just his pris'_

Her thoughts were cut off when the Taiyoukai stood up from his seat. He, too, had finished his meal.

She watched how he walked towards the pair of doors that leaded to the unknown area of the castle and suddenly stopped.

"This Sesshoumaru would never lower himself to let his prisoners eat at the same table as himself," he stated plainly without turning around.

Kagome widened her eyes. _'...Eh?'_

"It is dishonorable for a lord when a guest cannot find her way in his castle where she stays," he added before opening the doors and leaving the dining area.

Kagome froze and thought for a moment. _'Is me a guest??'_

Without further thinking, she quickly jumped up from her chair and ran after the demon lord towards the opened pair of doors.

-.-.-.-

Her gratitude and apology had indeed startled the Taiyoukai and he couldn't help but give her his full attention.

It had startled him even more when she said she was willing to work as his maid.

Not that he disliked the idea of recruiting another servant since that Jaken was of no use to him most of the time. Not to mention that he had lost a great deal of faith in the human girl after her betrayal, despite the fact that he had never considered her a maid.

But not Kagome. No...he would never let her degrade herself to that kind of work.

He could clearly recall her referring herself as the seventh princess of a place called Celes, that's why it shocked him greatly when she said she was willing to be a maid.

After walking out of the dining area, he waited for her to follow him with his back facing the open doorway. Not long after that, the screeching sound of the chair over the proud stone floor could be heard, followed by some hasty footsteps into his direction.

= OOMPF =

Sesshoumaru released a sigh when he realized what had happened.

There was no mistaking it, the girl couldn't stop on time and had bumped onto his tail that rested against his back.

"Ooops!! I'm so sorry...Sesshoumaru-sama," he heard her apologize as the weight against his back decreased.

Without responding, he started to walk deeper into the hallway.

But when he realized that she wasn't following, he stopped and turned around.

"Euhm..." the girl began, giving him an unsure look. "Are you...going to show me around in your castle?"

Sesshoumaru just couldn't believe what he was hearing. _'Is she mocking me or something??' _he thought perplexed.

The Taiyoukai was indeed becoming a bit annoyed at her stupidity, but all of it seemed insignificant when the girl in front of him suddenly giggled.

_'Now what...?'_ he thought confused.

"I'm sorry," she apologized again with her hand covering her mouth. "It's just...when I think about how soft your tail actually is...I..." Her voice faltered when she saw the puzzled expression on the demon lord's face.

A genuine smile then appeared on her face. "I feel terribly honored that Sesshoumaru-sama is willing to show me around in his castle or order to prevent me from getting lost," she said with a polite bow.

_'She's definitely prettier when smiling...'_ Sesshoumaru thought.

Suddenly the demon lord was at a loss for words for the first time and he quickly turned his back to her.

Without saying anything, he began to walk again. Much to his relief, he could sense that the girl was following him this time. Had she asked more of those ridiculous questions, he would probably have embarrassed himself by answering them.

And so, the tour around Sesshoumaru's castle had begun.

-.-.-.-

Luckily, the castle wasn't that big, or Kagome would really have trouble remembering the locations of each place.

Although Sesshoumaru remained silent the whole time, Kagome still managed to find out the function of each room or quarter since he opened every door for her to look inside.

Surprisingly enough, their final destination of the tour turned out to be the courtyard of the castle.

Kagome turned to the demon lord. _'Did he plan this out for me...?'_ she mused.

She was surprised when Sesshoumaru gave her an approving nod in return. _'He's giving me permission??'_ she thought disbelievingly.

Without hesitation, Kagome took off her sandals and entered the large garden. She took in a breath of Mother Nature and put up a smile on her face. _'It's really nice here...'_

But then her smile dropped again when she cast her gaze upwards to the sky and caught the faint moon that hung lonely on the morning sky. _'Father...mother...I wonder how they are doing...and Kikyou onee-sama...'_

-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru couldn't exactly pinpoint what he felt when he saw the beautiful smile disappear from her angelic face.

He knew she had to be either thinking about the incident that had cost her her wings or about her home. It was somehow related to the moon, since she had not looked away from it ever since she raised her gaze up to the sky.

Before he knew it, he was already standing beside her and asking the question.

"Do you miss it? Your home...?"

Kagome was surprised at first but then again, she knew these questions about her origin would come someday. She nodded. "I would be lying if I denied it," she replied.

"You live...on the moon?" he asked.

Kagome nodded again. "I live in a kingdom called Celes. My father and mother are the king and queen of Celes. And I'm their seventh and youngest daughter...also known as the seventh princess."

Sesshoumaru looked up at the moon. "Then...what were you doing on Earth? What business do you people from the moon have on this planet?"

He stole a glance at Kagome and saw that she was hesitating.

"Water..." she began. "...like a lot of other things that exist on this planet called Earth...doesn't exist on the moon. That's why we descend to Earth several times a year to get water...by nightfall."

Kagome swallowed hard before continuing. "This year I was allowed to come along with my mother and sisters, because I have reached the right age...I was truly excited."

She turned to the demon lord, not realizing that her eyes were starting to fill with salty tears. "To see the thing called Mother Nature with my very own eyes for the first time...to meet all sorts of strange animals...to meet the inhabitants of Earth...for the first time...who...wouldn't be happy...?"

Sesshoumaru widened his eyes when he saw her teary eyes. He felt as if his heart was being torn apart as he watched the first teardrops travel down her pink cheeks.

Kagome sobbed. "I was wondering how they were doing...a-and I"

Before she could finish her sentence, Kagome suddenly found herself in the arms of the Taiyoukai.

-.-

Even the demon lord was surprised by his own action. Why was he embracing her? He did not know.

But he wanted to stop those tears from falling, somehow...he wanted to comfort her.

Somehow, he couldn't help but feel partly responsible for the girl's homesickness. Should he have told her that her sister did come to Earth before to search for her? That her parents didn't abandon her? That he was the one who sent them away?

Sesshoumaru looked up at the sky again to the moon.

Suddenly he remembered what the winged one said before.

_"We will leave for now, but we will come back when the moon shares the same shape as tonight again. I hope you would be able to bring us good news by then."_

At the same time, he could feel the girl moving closer to him.

As if she was poisonous, the demon lord immediately let go of her and turned away from her. Startling her.

"Return to your chamber and get some rest," he said coldly as he ignored the confused expression on her face and walked away.

-.-.-.-

Kagome had calmed down in Sesshoumaru's arms. _'It's so warm...so gentle...this feeling...'_

But just when she was about to lean closer to him, he suddenly jerked away from her.

_'Why...?'_ Was the only question in her mind as she gave him a confused look _'Why are you comforting me...and pushing me away at the same time...?'_ she thought as she watched him walk away from her.

After the demon lord disappeared into the castle, Kagome waited until her tears dried before slowly walking to the border of the courtyard and putting on her sandals again.

_'Will I ever be able to understand him?'_ she asked herself.

With a sigh, she stole one last glance at the beautiful garden before turning to leave.

_'I just wish I knew what he is thinking sometimes...'_

-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru entered his study and made his way to one of the large windows behind his desk.

_'This Sesshoumaru does not have to explain to anyone about his actions...neither will he regret it. The girl will be able to go back to her home soon...and everything will return to normal again.'_ he thought as he studied the shape of the faint moon in the clear blue sky.

Then he thought about what she said before. _'A disgrace for having her wings torn off...'_ he summarized it in his mind.

"Jaken," he called after deciding something.

Within minutes, the green servant appeared at the doorway of the study. "Hai Sesshoumaru-sama?"

"Listen well," he ordered without turning to the servant.

His eyes never left the faint moon.

* * *

Things aren't developing very fast but I still hope you liked this chapter. I'm still trying to update every week if not within 10 days. Please look forward to the next chapter!!

Oh by the way, just to remind you. If you want me to notify you per email whenever I update, just tell me through reviews or email :), I'll add you to my mailing-list!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Changing objectives**

-.-.-.-.-

Oh yeah! The title probably already said it, we going to see some change in someone's objectives :). There will be some action coming up (finally haha).

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary: **  
**itadakimasu: **almost literally means 'Thanks for the food'. You say this before a meal.  
**ano: **kind of like "um..." or "er..."  
**hai:** yes  
**Taiyoukai:** big demon  
**onee-sama: **big sister

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**atashi-wa-Yume: **Don't worry, there will be more :D!

**Why?What?Shutup:** Wow! Read all of my stories? Thank you very much, I feel terribly honored, I really do :).

**Angelic 0263: **Thanks! I'm so happy to hear you like it!

**drow goddess: **Thanks thanks!! Yeah, it's quite shocking to see the innocent Rin doing something like betraying Sesshoumaru but then again, she's no child anymore and people do change no?

**DarkAngelB: **Hehehe you've guessed it right :). I would get jealous too if there's suddenly someone else who could affect the person I love more within 1 week than I could within 15 years. Thanks for reviewing!

**Silver Miko-Youkai: **Thank you very very much for reviewing. I'll try my very very very best to update as soon as possible :).

**MizuiroSnow:** Thanks! Yeah, I think if I find myself in her position, I would definitely get jealous of Kagome as well.

**robin's-hope: **Thank you very much :). Well, I'm actually not planning to make Rin any more 'worse' because she actually isn't bad-natured you know what I mean? Neh, she's not going to become evil. I'm happy to know that you will like my fic no matter how I'm going to write it, thank you!

**INUGIRL: **Thanks!

**Inukamisashi: **Hey no worries! Good luck with your assignments okay? Thanks for reviewing!

**Rhexi: **It's okay!! I'm already glad to know that you are still following my story :). Thanks!

**bad-girl4: **Thanks! Just wait and see and you will find out :).

**Shadow-Demon14: **Hahaha, no I don't think I will make Rin do anymore evil things. It would be so OOC, right? About Kikyou, the one on the moon has no relations at all with the one on Earth (fortunately haha, or things would get REALLY complicated). Thanks for reviewing and good luck with school!

**stoictimer: **Hahaha you're right! Kikyou is really frightening...it really surprised me to see her gentle side in the episode of Inuyasha about their past. Thanks for reviewing!

**Tea Leaves On Ice: **Yeah, Naraku wants to possess Kagome like he wants to possess Kikyou but I will definitely NOT let that happen don't worry :D. Thanks for reviewing!!

**Guardian-of-the-night:** I'm glad your review came through :) as it's always a big encouragement for me to continue writing a story hehe. Thanks thanks!

**anime-lavuh: **Thanks!!

**migele:** Hahaha well you were wondering about the right thing :). Thanks for reviewing!

**hellokitty-sayhello:** Yeah, but she's all grown up now and women are quite scary when they're jealous :P. But don't worry, she won't do anything more evil than that :).

**silverstargazing: **Thanks for reviewing! Well, time is actually running out...and just to reveal something about my story, this story is approaching its end when the people from the moon are coming to retrieve Kagome again.

-.-

Posted: 8 August 2004  
Last Edited: 8 August 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	10. Changing objectives

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
I'm so sorry for taking so long to update. It's the 10th day today and I'm glad I made it in time :). Anyhow, I'm having some problems with my muses at the moment. I will still try to update within 10 days as much as possible though. Enjoy reading this chapter!

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
-- --: locations  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Changing objectives**

**Previously:**  
Then he thought about what she said before._ 'A disgrace for having her wings torn off...'_ he summarized it in his mind.

"Jaken," he called after deciding something.

Within minutes, the green servant appeared at the doorway of the study. "Hai Sesshoumaru-sama?"

"Listen well," he ordered without turning to the servant.

His eyes never left the faint moon.

-.- the next morning -.-

Kagome stayed in her chamber and waited fully dressed for someone to tell her that she was allowed to have breakfast with Sesshoumaru again. Today, she was dressed in a simple white dress with a small V-shaped neckline and long sleeves.

_'I wonder if he's angry at me now?'_ she mused after waiting a whole hour. _'Maybe I shouldn't have done that yesterday...'_ she regretted, remembering how cold the demon lord became after she tried to lean onto his chest.

_'Even at dinner...'_

[FLASHBACK]

Kagome arrived at the dining room shortly after being summoned, only to find herself standing alone in the huge area.

She looked at the empty plate and glass on the large table in front of the seat where Sesshoumaru sat that morning and knew she was about to have a very lonely dinner.

"Sesshoumaru-sama has already finished dinner and returned to his chamber," Rin's voice spoke from behind her. "He told me to serve your dinner properly, so please...show me where you will be seated."

Kagome's face dropped a little at hearing this and reluctantly made her way towards the seat from across Sesshoumaru's.

[END FLASHBACK]

Kagome's train of thoughts crashed when someone knocked at her door.

=KNOCK KNOCK=

She almost jumped up of shock. "Come in!"

Much to her disappointment, it was Rin holding a tray of food in her hands. Somehow, her way of dressing seemed kind of gloomy today, with her dark gray yukata.

"Good morning Rin," she greeted her, but received no reply.

Rin silently made her way to the nightstand and put down the tray. Just when she was about to leave, Kagome halted her.

"I-is Sesshoumaru-sama very busy?" she asked hesitatingly.

The girl stopped but didn't turn around. "Sesshoumaru-sama has already left the castle this morning."

Kagome widened her eyes. "He left?? Why?"

"I don't know." Was her cold reply.

Kagome was a bit taken aback by her cold attitude and dropped her gaze to her feet.

She lifted her gaze again when Rin suddenly spoke after a short silence.

"Jaken-sama might know more..." she said. "Though I doubt he would allow himself to tell you anything about Sesshoumaru-sama's whereabouts."

After she said that, she exited the chamber.

Kagome watched the door close. _'Jaken-sama huh?'_

Her gaze traveled to the tray with food on her nightstand. _'I'll go ask him after I finished this...'_ she decided.

-.-.-.- somewhere in the Western Lands -.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru was walking around in the middle of a huge forest until a familiar scent caught his nose.

_'Hm...saves me a lot of trouble searching for you...'_ he thought with an invisible smirk.

= LEAVES RUSTLE =

"Heh, you've got a lot of nerve trespassing our territory on your own," a voice spoke from behind the trees.

Within several seconds, Sesshoumaru found himself to be totally surrounded by a large group of wolves and wolf-men.

The wolves all had a brown fur and the wolf-men all wore armor around their torso and leg protectors made of brown fur.

Two of the men stood out and seemed to be the foremen of the tribe. One was almost bald except for the white straight upstanding hair on top of his head. He wore normal shoulder-protectors and brown-black armor that covered his entire torso. And a chain could be seen diagonally running from his left shoulder to the right side of his waist. The other one had short gray hair with a small black part in the middle. This one had shoulder-protectors and made of fur and black armor that only covered a small part of his chest, leaving his stomach unprotected.

Sesshoumaru recognized them to be the two wolf-men who always followed the leader of the tribe around. "Bring me to your leader," he demanded sternly.

One of the wolf-men stepped forward and stood up to the dog demon. "Hey! You're in no position to demand things, you realize that don't you?"

Sesshoumaru's eyes traveled from the impudent whelp to the two foremen. _'It's taking too long...I guess I'll have to use hard measures.'_ he decided inwardly.

It totally caught the wolf-boy off guard when Sesshoumaru shot out a clawed hand and grabbed his throat.

"Nggrrrr," the boy struggled in his grip.

"Bring me your leader...NOW!!!" Sesshoumaru growled.

Not long after he said that, a gush of wind blew through the trees and a small whirlwind suddenly appeared in the small open area.

When the whirlwind vanished, it revealed a young wolf prince.

It was a young man with long black hair tied in a ponytail and pale blue eyes. He wore a brown headband over his head and gray-black armor covering his torso. Brown protectors made of fur could be seen on both his shoulders and lower legs.

"I'm here, now let him go," the wolf demanded.

Sesshoumaru's eyes darted towards the wolf prince and he released the whelp.

The wolf-boy quickly hid himself behind the wolf prince and coughed while covering his throat. "K-Kouga-sama..."

Kouga looked at his subordinate out of the corner of his eyes with an ashamed expression on his face. "What brings you here?" he demanded with a frowned as his eyes slowly shifted back to the dog demon.

"I have come to retrieve the jewel shards that you are using in your body," Sesshoumaru replied bluntly.

Kouga raised an eyebrow. "That's something new. I thought the great lord of the Western Lands was already powerful enough and would never rely on something like the Shikon no Tama," he mocked as he folded his arms together.

But Sesshoumaru didn't listen and was already charging forward at the wolf with his clawed hand, which was enveloped by a pale green aura, stretched out.

"Whoa!" Kouga gasped, barely succeeded in avoiding the poisonous attack.

"Y-you're actually serious about this?!??" he cried wide-eyed.

His only reply was a cold gaze and the sound of a sword being pulled out of its sheath.

Kouga frowned. _'Even if he is serious, how the hell could he know where I've put the shards?'_

That moment, the group of wolves suddenly lunged forward at Sesshoumaru in order to protect their leader.

_'Foolish...'_ the demon lord thought and swung Tenseiga that he had unsheathed at the wolves.

Within seconds, the wolves were purified and vanished into thin air.

= PSSHHHHRRTT =

Suddenly, Sesshoumaru sensed a small pulse, but it wasn't Tenseiga.

= PULSE =

A faint purplish light caught the peripheral area of his eyes and he looked more carefully at the source.

_'A Shikon shard huh?'_ he realized; his eyes locked on the shard-shaped object in the left arm of the wolf prince. Immediately after that, he found two more in the legs.

= PULSE =

He felt another pulse again and this time it turned out to be Tenseiga.

Sesshoumaru looked down at his sword and realized that it was glowing a faint purplish light, just like the Shikon shards in Kouga's body.

The truth was, the demon lord hadn't had the slightest idea why he was able to use purifying power with the sword that was meant to heal. Nor did he know why the Shikon shards that were buried deep down inside the wolf's limbs could be visible to his eyes.

Maybe some Goddess was helping him, he thought amused.

"You are quite pathetic for a youkai prince to use three of them in your limbs," he smirked.

Kouga widened his eyes. "You bastard! How did you " he cut himself off when he saw his henchmen readying themselves to launch a second attack.

"No!" he commanded. "This is my fight! You all are no match for him." He narrowed his eyes as he realized what was left over of his subordinates after most of them were purified. "Now stand back! This won't take too long."

_'You got that right.'_ Sesshoumaru agreed inwardly.

"Although I have no idea how you were able to find out where I've put the shards but I'll make sure you will never get your hands on them as long as I'm alive!" the wolf growled, taking a fighting stance.

Without warning, the wolf launched a first attack by kicking himself off of the ground and sending himself flying towards the demon lord with his leg first.

To counter the incoming attack, Sesshoumaru quickly summoned his whip and sent it towards the wolf.

The end of the green whip caught Kouga's ankle, completely surprising the wolf. "Shit!" he cried.

Sesshoumaru flicked the whip almost immediately and sent the wolf flying towards the earth again, creating a small crater and a large dust cloud.

"Grrrrrr..." Kouga growled as he pushed himself off of the dirt.

But he didn't have the time to plan his next move as Sesshoumaru suddenly disappeared from his line of vision within a blink of an eye. _'What the!'_ he thought shocked at witnessing the high speed.

It took him several seconds to realize that the demon lord was already standing to his left within arm reach.

Sesshoumaru raised Tenseiga up into the air and slashed down at the wolf, expecting that he would try to block it out of reflex with his left arm.

= SLASH =

Within expectations, the wolf had indeed raised his left arm out of reflex.

"AACK!!" he cried in pain and quickly jumped away with his other hand covering the large gash on his arm.

Both demons locked their gazes on the small shard that had been freed from Kouga's flesh as it fell towards the grass with several graceful twists.

But it never touched the earth, for Sesshoumaru caught it with his clawed hand.

"Chikusho..." Kouga cursed, painfully realizing that he had lost the battle.

Sesshoumaru turned to him with his usual stoic expression. "Choose," he said with a low voice. "Give them to me or die."

A moment of silence passed and the pack of wolves and wolf-men watched terror how their leader dug out the two shards in his legs with his claws.

With a defeated expression on his face, Kouga threw the two remaining jewel shards towards the dog demon. "Now leave!" he snarled.

Sesshoumaru caught them nonchalantly with his free hand and turned to leave without sparing them a glance.

Just when he was about to disappear behind the trees, he stopped and turned aside to look at the wounded youkai prince, who was still kneeling down to the grass.

Without further thoughts, the demon lord slashed in the air and sent a white colored blade at him with Tenseiga.

"Kouga!!" the wolf-men cried as they saw their leader being engulfed by the strange white light.

As the light faded, Kouga and his men couldn't believe their eyes. All the wounds on his body had miraculously healed and no scratch could be found.

When the wolf prince raised his gaze to where the dog demon had paused his steps, he found that the demon lord was already gone. _'Did he just heal me??_'he mused surprised, but concluded that he would never be able to find an answer from someone as unpredictable as Sesshoumaru.

-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru looked at the three shards that were resting at the center of his palm as he traveled through the forest.

Why was he doing this?

Was it all for her sake? Surely, he didn't need something like the Shikon no Tama to become stronger.

Yes, the girl will leave him someday to go back to her homeland; there is no denying it. But he somehow wanted her to go back with that beautiful smile on her face than with those sorrowful tears flowing down her cheeks.

He closed his palm and put the shards away. _'There is not much time left...I must make haste...'_ he decided inwardly as he looked up at the azure sky.

-.-.- meanwhile, on the moon -.-.-

"This is ridiculous! I cannot wait any longer!!" Kronos cried in frustration as he pushed away his thick red mantle and stood up from his throne.

Moira got up from hers as well and put a hand on the king's shoulder. "I know darling, but we have to be patient for Kagome's sake," she reasoned.

Kronos turned to his wife. "For Kagome's sake?! We've been waiting long enough for her to be shred apart by some merciless youkai or human!!" he argued.

This time, Moira was at a loss for words. It still bothered her that her daughters couldn't sense the vibes of Kagome's presence when they went back to Earth a couple of weeks ago, even today. It didn't bode well.

But even so, they couldn't do anything rash. After hearing Kikyou's description of the demon lord that ruled over the Western lands, it was horrific to imagine what would happen if Kagome did fall into his hands and he were to be angered by their unwelcome trespassing again.

Her inner debating ended when Kronos suddenly spoke again.

"Summon all of my daughters," he said.

-.-.- later -.-.-

"What is it father? Why did you summon us?" Kikyou asked.

She and the rest of the princesses were standing neatly in line in front of the throne. All of them were wearing their standard Greeks outfit and brown sandals that reached just below their knees.

Kronos cleared his throat. "I have summoned all of you here because I have decided a change of plans. I am not going to sit here and wait until we are allowed to go back to the Earth to retrieve my youngest daughter."

"I know I might be asking a bit much of you, but since most of you have my fighting spirit running through your veins, your skills will be needed for this plan to succeed."

Kikyou widened her eyes. "Father! Y-you plan to send us back to Earth again?? But the agreement was one month and one month hasn't passed yet! If we do something this rash, that demon might"

"We cannot wait!" Kronos cut her off. "Kagome could be in danger at this very moment! Even if that demon has captured my daughter, I will have no other choice than to attack his kingdom and take my daughter back by force!!"

The queen walked to his side. "My dearest, are you sure you want to send all of our daughters to that planet?" she asked. "It could be dangerous..."

Kronos thought for a moment and his eyes shifted back to their eldest daughter. "Your wedding shall not be delayed anymore, you will remain on Celes for the preparations," he decided aloud.

Kikyou couldn't believe what she heard and opened her mouth to argue, but stopped when she saw the queen shook her head.

The king turned to the remaining daughters. "Each of you shall take an imperial guard with you to Earth. Do not use violence unless it's necessary. You are to find out about your sister's whereabouts first before you take any other actions."

A difficult expression could suddenly be seen on Kronos' face as he continued. "Like all of you, I'm worried about Kagome's safety too. I am angered that I'm not capable of saving her myself, that's why I have to depend on all of you and your skills that you have inherited from me and your mother."

All princesses except for Kikyou nodded understandingly.

Moira frowned and turned to the king again. "But dearest"

"I have no other option love," Kronos cut her off and turned to her. "You and Kikyou will take two more imperial guards to Earth and come back as soon as possible, do I make myself clear?" he ordered sternly.

The queen dropped her face. "I know you better than anybody else that you will not stray from what you have decided," she sighed.

Kronos smiled at her approvingly and turned to their daughters again. "This plan will be taken out within a week, so make all necessary preparations on time."

"Hai!" they acknowledged full of spirit with their heads bowed down.

All except for Moira and Kikyou

* * *

How did you like this one? A lot more action than the previous chapters right? There will be more in the next chapter so please look forward to it!!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: The Shikon no tama**

-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru is going to arrive at Naraku's lair. There will definitely be a big fight! Will our handsome main character manage to complete the Shikon no tama before the arrival of the people from the moon? There are still the last remaining shards in Kikyou's (from Earth) possession...how will he be able to convince the miko to give them to him?

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**chikusho:** shit/damn it  
**hai: **yes  
**miko: **priestess

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**Nightmares and Fairy Tales: **Thank you very much :). Fortunately I didn't get a headache of all this thinking about how to write the story hehehe.

**drow goddess: **Thanks! I hope you will continue to like this story to its end :).

**robin's-hope:** Thanks thanks! I guess it's hard for a girl to share a person who she's been living with for 15 years. And it's okay, reviews don't need to be long to be encouraging for me :).

**DOS:** Thank you, glad you understand hehe.

**demonswty:** Thanks!! Keep looking forward ne?

**DarkAngelB: **Hahaha thank you! I'm sorry to hear that but I guess you can learn something from it. Well, you buy the clothes for yourself to look pretty in it right? Unless everybody says it's not looking good on you, you shouldn't have to worry :). Yeah you got it right about Sesshoumaru's objective hehe, nice!

**Dark Nadeshiko: **Yup, it's a bit frustrating but there are indeed two Kikyou's. And Kikyou was supposed to be dead but she was revived by that miko in the series. Without Kagome, it was still possible for her to be revived because her soul lingered within her ashes. And Kouga is right here hahaha, but this will be the only chapter with him in it, hope you're not too disappointed with that. Thanks for reviewing!

**migele:** Torn wings cannot be attached to Kagome's back anymore, so the Shikon no tama is the only option left :). Or did I misunderstand what you tried to say in your review? Anyway thanks for reviewing!

**Why?What?Shutup:** Thanks! I like them too!

**Sora the Taske: **Thanks!

**stoictimer: **Hehe thanks! I'm glad you like it!

**Inukamisashi: **As long as I have my wonderful muses, I won't quit fanfictions :). Thanks for reviewing!

**bad-girl4: **Thanks for reviewing! I've added you to my mailinstlist :).

**kawaiipnay: **Hehe just be patient and you'll find out soon enough :). Thanks for reviewing!

**Wake-Robin: **Thank you very much! I'll try to update within 10 days!

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Thanks! I'm glad you liked it! Look forward to the coming chapters as well ne?

Posted: 18 August 2004  
Last Edited: 18 August 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	11. The shikon no tama

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
Hey all!! Thanks for waiting!! Since I've only been updating short chapters lately I'm going to give you a nice long chapter this time, I hope you will like it! Have fun reading!!

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
-- --: locations  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**The Shikon no Tama**

After traveling for several days without resting, Sesshoumaru finally arrived at his destination.

In front of him stood a huge mansion that was built with a Japanese flavor. It was a flat and wide building almost entirely made of wood and bamboo shoots. All of it was given a yellow-red hue by the setting sun.

An extremely disgusting and familiar scent flowed towards the demon lord's nose together with a large amount of jyaki from the mansion.

He realized there was a huge barrier surrounding the place but as he took a step closer, the barrier suddenly created an opening in front of him.

_'Inviting me in huh?'_ he thought as he watched the opening close itself after he walked inside.

Knowing that it could be a trap, he still continued his way towards the mansion. He had started to do what he had decided and so he will definitely finish it.

There's no turning back now.

With his mind set on that thought, Sesshoumaru ascended the few wooden steps and entered the mansion.

"Fancy seeing you here," a woman's voice spoke from the shadows deeper into the hallway in front of him.

Sesshoumaru halted his step and narrowed his eyes at the silhouette.

The person walked into the light of the setting sun that came through a door of the hallway that was ajar. It was a woman with blood-red eyes and short black hair tied up at the back of her head with several small white feathers decorating it. She was wearing a traditional white kimono with broad dark-purple stripes here and there and a checked yellow sash could be seen around her waist.

"Kagura," Sesshoumaru recognized her as one of the bastard's minions.

"You remembered...I'm so honored," the woman responded sarcastically.

When Sesshoumaru realized that she wasn't making way for him to enter, he frowned. "I came here for Naraku, not to waste my time on his minions," he spoke clearly.

Kagura smiled and took her folded black fan out of her long sleeve. "I know, but orders are orders and my given order was to tire you as much as possible before you reach him."

The demon lord raised a brow. "You're not that loyal to the bastard, are you? Giving away your objective surely wouldn't be one of your given orders."

Kagura smirked at the dog demon's intelligence but then scowled when several bee-like creatures appeared midair beside her. _'Naraku, you bastard. Sending Saimyoushou to keep an eye on me...you really don't trust me that much huh?'_ she cursed inwardly. "Cut the crap! Prepare yourself Sesshoumaru!" she cried and flipped open her fan while jumping backwards to create more distance between them. "Fuujin no Mae!!" she cried.

Kagura summoned the sickle-shaped wind blades by swinging her fan and sent them flying towards the demon lord.

Sesshoumaru jumped aside, easily avoiding the incoming attack and watched how the blades crushed the walls and floor of the hallway behind him. "If you want to die so much," he said while unsheathing Tenseiga and turning to Kagura again. "I will fulfill your death wish!"

Right after he said that, he dashed towards the wind-user.

Kagura barely dodged the attack on time by jumping backwards. She scowled. _'Tch, there's no way I can tire him out without being cut in two first...'_

As she thought that, she realized that the demon lord had caught up to her again and had raised his sword to slash at her.

_'Shit!!'_ she cursed, knowing that it was already too late to dodge.

= CLANG =

Sesshoumaru raised a brow when he found something blocking his attack. When he cast his eyes downwards, he saw a small girl holding a white circular mirror.

The child, who seemed to be at most 8 years old, had snow-white hair reaching a little below her tiny shoulders with two white flowers decorating her hair at each side of her head. Her eyes were pitch-black and she was dressed in a simple kimono that matched the color of her hair. Her tiny feet were wearing a pair of straw sandals.

Kagura widened her eyes. "K-Kanna?" she gasped in surprise.

_'Another offspring of Naraku huh?'_ Sesshoumaru thought annoyed. He put more pressure on his sword. _'There's no way I'm going to be blocked by a simple mirror!'_

But the little girl didn't move, neither did the mirror in her hands.

The expressionless look on her face remained as she whispered something inaudible. Suddenly the mirror started to glow and in a split second an invisible force pushed back the sword, causing Sesshoumaru to retreat several steps.

The dog demon scowled as he looked at Tenseiga. _'Useless...'_ he cursed inwardly and sheathed the sword again. He reached out for his other sword, Toukijin, and turned to his opponents again.

Without warning, Sesshoumaru raised Toukijin up to the air and swung it downwards, sending several huge blades of light towards the two offspring.

In total contrast to Tenseiga's new purifying power, this attack was filled with evil youki, as if it was the wrath of the youkai, who's fangs were used to create this weapon.

In reaction to the incoming blades, the girl names Kanna merely held up her mirror. "Kagura...stay behind," said her hollow and monotone voice.

"Oi...y-you sure about this??" Kagura asked hesitatingly as she did what she was told.

The three of them watched the youki blades destroy the wooden floor as it made their way towards the mirror.

Much to Sesshoumaru's disappointment, a shield created by the mirror blocked his attack again.

Out of anger, he summoned his green whip and flung it towards the mirror-holder. With one quick jerk, the whip smacked the mirror out of Kanna's hands and fell to the wooden floor.

= SHATTER =

The sounds of shattering glass echoed in the hallway.

Kagura widened her eyes while Kanna's expression remained unchanged as they both watched the barrier being crushed like it was mere glass. It was already too late to dodge and the two disappeared into a cloud of dust as the blades hit them straight on..

As the dust cloud started to subside, the two offspring were already nowhere to be found.

Content with the outcome of the battle, Sesshoumaru leaped over the gap in the floor and walked deeper into the hall.

-.- later -.-

After searching for a while, the demon lord finally ended up in front of a room where the scent of Naraku was the strongest.

With a simple slash, he cut the slide doors in two.

As they fell apart, they revealed a calm Naraku, who was sitting on the floor at the center of the room. He seemed to be waiting for him.

"Kukuku, welcome Sesshoumaru," he said with a grin. "You've saves me a lot of time searching for you. It's even perfect to know that you've already retrieved the shards of the wolf prince."

Sesshoumaru's expression was the same as usual as he entered the space.

"After getting the shards from you...all that's left would be the one in your hanyou brother's possession," he continued.

_'These should have been my words, bastard...'_ Sesshoumaru responded with his mind as he readied Toukijin.

Not planning to give the bastard another moment to release any more bullshit, he commenced the battle by charging at him with his sword raised in the air.

Unfortunately, his first move did not hit anything but the wooden floor. His eyes shifted from the crack in the wood in the floor to the grinning Naraku, who now stood beside him.

"You'll have to do more damage than THAT to defeat me," he mocked, referring to the small gap in the floor.

The dog demon scowled and swiped his other clawed hand sideward at Naraku, but only to hit nothing but air.

He pulled Toukijin out of the wood and turned to Naraku fully. _'This battle is not going to be easy...'_ he thought inwardly, anticipating where his opponent will escape to the next time he's going to attack.

-.- back at Sesshoumaru's castle -.-

Kagome widened her eyes. "W-what did you just say??"

"L-let me go!" Jaken gasped for oxygen. He struggled in her death-grip as his short legs dangled midair.

Kagome had tried for several days to get information out of the servant but with no success. Today, she was going to get some information no matter what so she cornered the small youkai in his quarters and held him midair by the collar of his dark-brown robe.

She finally let go of him after calming down. "Jaken...what did you say Sesshoumaru-sama went to?" she asked again.

"It's Jaken-sama to you, impudent girl!!" the servant coughed. "Sesshoumaru-sama has left us behind in order to complete the Shikon no Tama."

"S-Shikon...no Tama?" Kagome asked puzzled.

Jaken nodded. "It's a powerful jewel that grants its holder a tremendous amount of power to fulfill any wishes or desires," he explained.

"But isn't Sesshoumaru-sama already powerful enough? What does he need such a powerful item for?" Kagome wondered aloud.

The servant frowned. "It would take a miracle for Sesshoumaru-sama to tell me something that personal," he responded. "He only told me that he was going on a short journey to complete the Shikon no Tama and that your well-being will be my responsibility in the meantime."

A worried expression could be seen on Kagome's face as she listened. _'I hope he's okay...'_ she thought.

"Oh well, I guess there's nothing to worry about since Sesshoumaru-sama is strong," the green youkai added.

Kagome relaxed a little at this. "I guess you're right."

And they stood there in silence for a short moment, each buried within their own thoughts.

Little did they notice the silhouette of a girl standing in the shadows of the door-opening. She had overheard the conversation between Jaken and Kagome and was clasking the sleeves of her own yellow-orange yukata. _'I can't believe it! She actually managed to get Jaken-sama tell her!'_ she thought disbelievingly. _'Stupid girl! How can she not realize that Sesshoumaru-sama is doing all this for her??'_

As much as she didn't want to believe it herself, there was no other plausible explanation for the demon lord's sudden quest. It must have got something to do with that strange girl.

Silently and deep in thoughts, the silhouette walked away from the door and disappeared into the shadows of the night.

-.- back to Naraku's lair -.-

= PANT PANT =

The sound of exhaustive breathing filled the silent atmosphere that hung in Naraku's chamber.

The two youkai never looked away from each other as they gathered their strength again.

Each of them stood at a corner from across each other of the square-shaped room.

Sesshoumaru scowled as his grip on Toukijin tightened. _'This has taken me too much time...' _he thought annoyed.

Some parts of his garment were torn apart as a result of the long battle and shimmering sweat-drops filled his forehead. He hated to admit it but his body was actually feeling heavy of the battle. The long journey without proper rest had definitely added up to this exhaustion.

_'I've used up most of my strength...I have to finish him off quickly...or I might...not make it in time...'_ he decided.

Much to his relief, his opponent did not get away without a scratch either.

Two of the tentacles that grew on Naraku's lower back were cut off and gashes could be seen all over his dark purple vest and gray armor. He seemed to be getting tired as well by his annoyed and dull expression.

As always, impatience never leaded to success and this time was no exception.

Losing his patience, Sesshoumaru just charged wildly at his opponent, hoping to cut him through with one last swing of his sword.

Even Naraku was surprised by the demon lord's reckless behavior, but he didn't care since it was definitely putting him in a more advantageous position of the fight.

With one swift movement, he leaped out of the danger-zone and countered with a quick swing of his arm, which had strong spiked armor protecting it.

Wide-eyed, Sesshoumaru watched how Toukijin was smacked out of his clawed hand.

= CRACK =

The next thing he knew, Naraku had already broken through his armor and pierced his stomach with a long gray spike that grew on his arm-protector.

Sesshoumaru spat blood and stumbled backwards several steps.

Naraku retracted his spike and smirked evilly. "So...how does it feel to be defeated for the first time?" he asked with a chuckle.

_'Chi...chikusho...'_ the demon lord cursed inwardly as he covered the hole in his stomach with his hand.

-.- at the same time -.-

Kagome felt a sudden chill and paused her steps.

She was wandering through the courtyard of the castle when she suddenly felt a cold breeze pass by. _'What's this uneasy feeling?'_ she thought disturbed, raising her gaze up to the dark cloudy sky. _'There will be no stars tonight...'_ she thought disappointed and raised her hand to her chest. _'Sesshoumaru-sama...please be okay...'_

-.- back to Sesshoumaru -.-

_'Kagome...'_ he called her name with the voice in his mind. His eyes shifted from Naraku to Toukijin, which was lying on the wooden floor next to the hanyou.

Just when he was about to jump forward in order to retrieve his weapon, a sudden pulse coming from his side startled him.

= PULSE =

He stared down at the sword that hung around his waist and widened his eyes.

Not only was Tenseiga glowing a strange purplish light, there was also a faint image of a person whom Sesshoumaru had never expected to see.

The person was kneeling beside him and looking up at him with pleading eyes while holding the healing sword with both her hands.

"K-Kagome...?" he whispered bewildered, receiving no reply or change of expression from the girl.

He knew it wasn't the girl in person since the image was too faint, but what was she doing here?

Sesshoumaru looked more carefully at her facial expression and found out that she was begging him to do something.

He looked at both her hands that were holding the Tenseiga. _'You want me to use Tenseiga?'_ he asked inwardly.

It was almost imperceptible but the dog demon could swear he saw the image of the girl nod in reply to his question.

In the following seconds, something clicked inside the demon lord and he recalled some events before and after he had found out about Tenseiga's new powers.

_'Back then...I was poisoned by Naraku's attack because I wanted to protect her...' _he remembered. _'Yet when I woke up again in my own bed...the poison was purified and all of my wounds were gone...the girl had used Tenseiga to heal me...and then...strange events started to take place...'_

He remembered how the barrier created by Tenseiga repelled the purifying arrow, shot by the hands of the powerful priestess named Kikyou.

Sesshoumaru also remembered how the girl's body burned off the bastard's hands when he tried to kidnap her before his eyes in his chamber. It was strange when he purified Naraku with the sword that was meant to heal that day. Even Inuyasha's priestess herself was shocked enough to try to kill her. Yes, he had stopped the arrow and his hand was burned because of that, but the girl miraculously healed it in an instance by touching it.

He clearly remembered the priestess's words after she saw it all happen.

_"What the hell are you..."_

_"That girl is no human!! There is no way a human could possess a holy power greater than mine!" _

The demon lord gazed at Kagome's image again. _'I should have realized it earlier...you were the one who gave Tenseiga its purifying power...when you used it to heal me.'_

But then his thoughts became interrupted by Naraku's voice.

"What's the matter Sesshoumaru? Pondering about what would happen to the angel if you died?" he laughed. "Don't worry, I'll take GOOD care of her," he said, emphasizing the word.

Sesshoumaru's ears twitched and he scowled when he realized that Kagome's image had disappeared. "This Sesshoumaru will not allow anyone to touch what's his," he growled as he took hold of Tenseiga's hilt and pulled it out of its sheath. "And more importantly, I will never die by your filthy hands, hanyou."

Calling his opponent like that definitely hit a sensitive nerve as Naraku's lips curled downwards. "Shut up bastard!" he cried angrily and sent a large cloud of miasma towards the demon lord.

Sesshoumaru hesitated. Should he dodge or...?

A pulse coming from the sword in his hand answered him.

= PULSE =

Shortly after that, a faint purplish barrier appeared around the dog demon, protecting him from the approaching poisonous miasma.

After the long-range attack, Naraku immediately charged at Sesshoumaru with his arm stretched out, hoping to catch him off guard with the sudden short-range attack.

= CLASH =

Luckily, Sesshoumaru saw it coming on time and was able to block it with Tenseiga.

Surely he would not fancy another hole in his body. But what totally surprised him was the hand that shot out and grabbed his throat.

"Gotcha!" Naraku smirked and tightened his grip.

At the same time, he put more pressure on the sword that was blocking his other arm.

But the demon lord did not panic at all; nor did he try to pull away Naraku's hand from his throat with his free hand. He merely grinned at his opponent. "That's not a wise move, Naraku," he advised.

"What the hell are you talking ab" Naraku spat but stopped when small strings of smoke rose from where his hand was holding Sesshoumaru's throat.

"UWAAAARRGGHHH!!!!" he cried out in pain as he retracted his burned hand and jumped backwards. "Y-you...!! It's the same as that girl...that power!!" he snarled, holding injured hand.

"You've been a nuisance for quite some time now...it's time for you to die," Sesshoumaru stated plainly.

Without warning, he swung Tenseiga diagonally from bottom to top at Naraku.

Several large blades of light appeared and crushed the wooden floor as they made their way towards the hanyou.

"Heh! Such a slow attack will never be able to hit me!" Naraku laughed as he jumped aside and easily dodged the blades. "Have you got nothing better than th"

Before he could finish, Sesshoumaru had already appeared in front of him and thrust Tenseiga through his chest. The demon lord had launched his second attack right after the first one when the hanyou dropped his guard as he dodged.

A trail of blood streamed from the Tenseiga's blade to the hilt and Sesshoumaru's lips curled up into a grin for the first time. "You are a fool not to hide your heart before confronting me. Never underestimate this Sesshoumaru."

With a jerk, he pulled his sword out of Naraku's chest.

The hanyou winced in pain and stumbled backwards to the floor. He could already feel his body being purified from the inside. "Cut the crap...j-just finish it..." he groaned with a trail of blood coming out of the corner of his mouth.

Without further thinking, Sesshoumaru slashed Tenseiga at Naraku and sent him to the afterlife.

After watching his archenemy dissolve into thin air, his expression did not change at all. He scowled instead. As much as he desired to kill the bastard, he didn't like to be ordered to do so.

His thoughts stopped when a purplish glow caught his eye. He dropped his gaze to the floor and realized it was the Shikon no Tama.

Except for some indents on its surface, the jewel was almost flawless.

Sesshoumaru walked closer to it and crouched to pick it up.

Just when he wanted to get up again, a sharp pain shot through his body and caused him to wince in pain. He looked at the wound in his stomach and realized that it was still bleeding.

The rest of his lower body was stained red with his own blood.

_'There's no time to lose...I must carry on...'_ he convinced himself as he gritted his fangs and stood up with the jewel safe in his hand.

The demon lord turned around and left the empty building; determined to find the last keeper of the final shard.

"Inuyasha..." he said softly.

And not to mention that woman of his, who should have rested in peace while she could.

-.- the next day -.-

_'I wonder if Sesshoumaru-sama's okay...'_ Kagome thought as she gazed out of the window in her bedroom. _'It's been several days already since he left...' _

It was only afternoon, but her bedroom had become pretty dark because of the cloudy sky.

Although the storm had only started this morning, it seemed like forever to Kagome, who had never seen such a horrible weather before.

The only light sources in the room were the weak candlelight on the wall and desks. And the only auditory sensation was tapping sound that the raindrops made as they collided with the glass windows.

Kagome blinked out of reflex when a sudden flash of lightning traveled horizontally from cloud to cloud and lit up the entire landscape.

A loud roar trembled through the skies, causing the glass to resonate and the earth to shake.

Kagome cringed but didn't move away from the window. _'Sesshoumaru-sama...please come back safe...'_ she prayed inwardly as her eyes stared into the trees of the endless forest before her.

-.- meanwhile -.-

Sesshoumaru wandered absentmindedly through the wet forest.

To tell the truth, he had never felt this annoyed before.

His garment, tail and long silver hair were soaked. His wet bangs were plastered against his forehead and covering half of the crescent-moon mark. And although the pouring rain had succeeded in washing away the red stains on his outfit, the scent of blood still lingered on his body, which was giving away his position and rendering him vulnerable.

_'They should be here somewhere...'_ he thought, sniffing the air.

The only thing merciful about this onslaught was that it didn't mask the smell of his surroundings and most importantly the scent of the one he was tracking down.

Shortly after that, he arrived at a small clearing of the forest.

The demon lord had planned to stay within the darkest shadows but failed as a voice called to him.

"Come out Sesshoumaru, we know you're here."

Sesshoumaru stepped into the clearing and found himself facing his hanyou brother and the priestess.

They were both standing in a round gazebo below a circular wooden roof supported by four strong wooden pillars.

"You were expecting me huh?" he said nonchalantly as he stopped right in front of the resting place.

"Cut the crap! Why are you even following us? You've already eliminated Naraku didn't you? You got your revenge right?" Inuyasha spat irritated.

"I have come to get the last shard," he responded bluntly.

The hanyou widened his eyes. "You what?! Since when have you started to gather them too??"

He was answered with a death-glare.

Sesshoumaru was already too tired and annoyed to respond to his idiotic little brother. His mind was only set on getting the final shard and returning to her side...before

"Why are you seeking to complete the jewel?" spoke the priestess's calm voice, cutting off the thoughts of the demon lord.

"That is none of your concern," he replied coldly.

"Hmm..." Kikyou's lips curled up of amusement. "You're doing it for that girl, aren't you?"

Sesshoumaru didn't respond to this, but the priestess knew better.

"I knew it," she said.

A moment of silence fell between the two parties and the sound of the pouring rain hitting the wooden roof sounded louder than before.

The two brothers were surprised when Kikyou reached into her long white sleeve and took out the shard.

"K-Kikyou...what are you" Inuyasha asked, but was cut off when she spoke.

"Give me the rest of the jewel," she said to Sesshoumaru, only to be answered with a wary look. "Surely you know you are not capable of merging the shards into the complete jewel," she reasoned, reaching out her open palm.

Reluctantly, Sesshoumaru took out the nearly complete jewel and the four shards that he had collected and gave it to the priestess.

Kikyou put the final shard together with the rest and closed her palm.

Several thin rays of light escaped through her fingers as she mumbled something inaudible.

After the light faded, she opened her palm again, revealing a complete and shimmering Shikon no Tama.

Both Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru stared in amazement at the flawless marble, but their attention soon turned to the priestess again as she spoke.

"I cannot give you the Shikon no Tama, but I can let you borrow it until you're done with it," she said. "But only under two conditions."

Inuyasha frowned. _'She's making a deal with Sesshoumaru?? He's definitely not going to let her get away with his...'_ he thought alerted and moved a clawed hand to the hilt of his sword.

"Speak," was Sesshoumaru's calm response, which totally surprised the hanyou.

"First of all, I will not allow you to have evil intentions with the Shikon no Tama," she began.

"I will give you my word of honor," the demon lord promised. "The second condition?"

"Furthermore..." Kikyou continued. "I do not ever want to see that girl again."

Sesshoumaru raised a brow. Even Inuyasha was surprised to hear this.

"She does not belong here and" she began her explanation but was cut off by the demon lord.

"You feel threatened by her...don't you?" he said, knowing that he had hit the jackpot as he noticed the scowl on her face.

"If you treasure her then I suggest you better pray that I'll never meet her again," she threatened. "Because if I do...I swear I will kill her."

The hanyou widened his eyes at this but didn't get a change to speak as Sesshoumaru beat him to it.

"Agreed," the demon lord said and took the jewel out of her hand.

He turned to leave but was halted by Inuyasha. "Wait a minute...Sesshoumaru...you're injured, aren't you?" he asked out of the blue.

The demon lord didn't reply.

"I didn't notice it before but the smell of blood is all over you," he continued. "...your blood."

Sesshoumaru looked over his shoulder. "Such a wound cannot kill me," he said coldly and walked away.

Inuyasha and Kikyou watched him disappear into the forest in the middle of the rain.

"Why did you give it to him? Did you not want to protect the jewel yourself?" Inuyasha asked, turning to the priestess.

"I did not sense any evil intentions in his words," she explained, turning to him. "And I believe a proud demon lord as he, should be someone who keeps his word."

The hanyou frowned. "But you"

"That is all I have to say Inuyasha," she cut him off coldly as her eyes shifted back to where the demon lord had gone.

_'You better keep your promises Sesshoumaru...especially the second one...'_

* * *

Pfew...took me long enough to type this long chapter, I really hope you liked it :). Please look forward to the next chapter ne? 

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

****

**Next chapter: Returns, departures and encounters.**

As the title already says it, Sesshoumaru's gonna return to his castle. But time's running out and the winged ones have already arrived on Earth. And what's this? Kagome is going to leave the castle on her own?! Want to know why? Then be sure to read the next chapter when it's posted :).

**Vocabulary:**  
**jyaki: **evil energy**  
Fuujin no mae:** Dance of the wind-blades. A skill used by Kagura.  
**chikusho:** shit/damn

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**Wake-Robin: **Hahaha thanks!

**DarkAngelB: **Sorry for the late update again :), I hope you weren't bored to death hehe, just kidding! I'm glad to hear you liked my previous chapter, thanks! So you like baseball? How did it go?

**Inukamisashi: **Hey there, don't worry, there will be Sesshoumaru/Kagome scenes in the coming chapters. But to be honest with you, there won't be many chapters left before the final one :). I'm happy that you still like my stories!

**Guardian-of-the-night:** Thanks! I'm glad I've described them properly hehehe. Well, I've updated on the 10th day so you should be able to read the update when you return :).

**drow goddess: **Thanks thanks!! Hope you liked this extra long chapter hehe.

**robin's-hope: **Thank you! Yeah, the king is impatient, but I guess every king would do that to save his precious little daughter right? Oops, I just made Naraku create a hole in Sesshoumaru's stomach...even after you said that no one could hurt him...my bad hahaha. Hey don't worry, Kikyou won't die even if her shards has been taken from her, because she's living on souls remember? And I'm still thinking about whether to let the two Kikyou's meet each other or not hehe.

**corrupted-miko:** Just wait and find out hehehe. But it's good to know that my story can let readers wonder about things because that means that they've read my story with interest hihihi :).

**stoictimer:** Thank you very much!!

**kang: **Thanks!!

**Shadow62: **Thanks for telling me!! And my muses have been very good lately, I guess they felt guilty for letting you readers wait for so long. I hope it was worth the wait :).

**anime-lavuh: **Thanks for waiting! I hope you now know why Sesshoumaru is gathering the shards, if not, it will be made clear in the next chapter! Be looking forward to it ne?

**Jirurianu: **I never really expected new readers to review most of the previous chapters so this is a surprise haha. Thank you very much :). I'm so glad you like my story so far! And very happy to know that you've read my other stories as well. Hmm I wonder if you'll get angry with me if I suddenly put up a very evil cliffhanger and let you hang like that for let's say...10 days? Hahaha well, I can't get over that limit (except when I've announced it because of tests and such...) because it's the limit I've set for myself hehe.

**Kayrin: **Yup, just wait and see, because I won't disclose anything about things that are to come hihihi. Thanks for reviewing!

**YamiHikariSakura:** I've added you to my mailinglist! Thanks for reviewing!

**Rhexi: **Hey don't worry about that :). It really sucks when the technology lets you down like that huh? Maybe I should make some more backups too...hmmm... but anywayz, thanks for reviewing!!

Posted: 28 August 2004  
Last Edited: 28 August 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	12. Returns, departures and encounters

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
-- --: locations  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
=capslocked words=: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Returns, departures and encounters**

Several days have passed since the beginning of the storm and it seemed like it was going to end today.

Kagome stood on Sesshoumaru's balcony and watched how the wind from the South carried the dark clouds with it towards the North. _'Tonight I'll finally be able to see the moon and stars again.'_ she thought relieved. _'Sesshoumaru-sama...you'll probably be watching them too tonight...won't you?'_ Her facial expression saddened at the thought of the demon lord.

Not long after that, she felt a soft breeze coming from behind her. At first, she thought it was just a normal breeze, but she was wrong when a stern voice suddenly spoke.

"What are you doing here?"

Kagome jumped up of shock and quickly turned to the voice.

There he was, standing right in front of her on the balcony, with the same blanc expression on his face. His garment was shred into pieces at his sleeves and hakama and his armor didn't look very unharmed either.

She widened her eyes. "Sess...Sesshoumaru-sama!" she gasped.

In a split second, Kagome ran to him and landed onto his chest. "You're safe!!" she cried into his chest. "Thank God!!"

But the demon lord did not hug her back; he merely stared down at her.

Kagome widened her eyes when she felt his full weight leaning onto her. She quickly pulled back, only to realize that the demon lord had lost consciousness.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!!" she cried worriedly as she went down on her knees, taking Sesshoumaru with her.

It was then that she became aware of the fact that her blue dress and both her hands were tainted red. When she looked back at Sesshoumaru, she saw the horrible wound in his stomach and gasped. "Somebody!! Come quick!!" she yelled into the castle and held the demon lord close to her. "Sesshoumaru!! Please...please don't die!! Don't leave me alone!!"

-.- that night -.-

After Jaken finished bandaging his lord's wound and changing him into a clean white kimono, he turned to leave the chamber.

He stopped when he saw Kagome at the doorway.

"Can I see him?" she asked meekly.

Jaken frowned. "Sesshoumaru-sama's asleep. You better not wake him up or I'll"

"I promise," Kagome cut him off, her eyes shifting towards the occupied bed at the end of the room.

She entered the chamber after letting the servant pass and closed the door behind her.

The bottom of her white night-dress softly caressed her ankles as she quietly tiptoed on her bare feet towards the bed.

She even tried to breath as soundlessly as possible when she arrived at the bedside.

Kagome watched the calm expression on his face as she slowly sat down next to him on the edge.

When she saw that some silver bangs covered the dark-purple mark on his forehead, she reached out her hand to push them aside. She was glad that she hadn't woken him up by doing that and slowly retracted her hand.

But her hand suddenly stopped halfway back.

Mesmerized by his sleeping face, Kagome reached out her hand once again and began to stroke his cheek.

Her delicate fingertips traced the dark stripes just below his closed eyes as she whispered his name. "Sesshoumaru..." Not even realizing that she had dropped the '-sama' for the second time.

_'What...am I doing...?' _she wondered, slowly pulling back her hand. _'I shouldn't...do this...'_

She got up to her feet again, but just when she was about to walk away from the bed, something grabbed her wrist and stopped her.

When she turned to her side, she saw that Sesshoumaru was fully awake now and that he was holding her wrist with his clawed hand.

"S-Sesshoumaru-sama!" she gasped surprised.

And so, the staring competition had begun with the demon lord lying there and the girl standing next to him in silence, eye to eye.

Kagome swallowed hard and placed her other hand on her chest. _'Why is my heart beating so fast?'_

"Sesshoumaru-sama...I'm sorry...I didn't mean to wake you u" she apologized but stopped when she saw him reach into his sleeve with his other hand and took out something.

Without saying anything, the demon lord put it into Kagome's hand and let go of her wrist.

Kagome looked down at her hand and saw a purple marble-shaped jewel. "This is..."

"The Shikon no Tama..." he said with a weak voice.

Kagome looked back at Sesshoumaru in surprise._ 'He really found it...'_ she thought, recalling Jaken's words. "B-but why...?" she asked.

He didn't reply her question; instead, he just looked at her with the same indescribable expression.

_'He's really got beautiful eyes...'_ Kagome thought inwardly.

She snapped out of it when the demon lord suddenly averted his gaze to look outside through one of the windows.

"Use it to recover your wings," he finally said after a moment of silence, without looking at her.

Kagome widened her eyes. "...Eh?"

_'My w-wings...??'_ she thought, instantly remembering the large scars on her back. She had almost forgotten that she used to be a winged one that could soar through the skies on the Moon.

She looked down at the jewel in her hand. _'With this...I can get my wings back? And then...then'_

"And go back to your home," the demon lord suddenly added, cutting off her thoughts.

Kagome's eyes immediately shifted back to Sesshoumaru and widened. She had opened her mouth but no words came out of it.

_'Did he...just told me to go home...? Back to the moon??'_ she thought disbelievingly. _'B-but then...I might never come back again...and never see Sesshoumaru-sama again...'_

"But..." she stammered, not being able to find the right words. "...but I"

"You do not belong here," Sesshoumaru cut her off.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, I"

Sesshoumaru sighed and turned away from her completely to lie on his side. "I'm tired...leave me."

Kagome's face dropped. She knew there was no way she could argue with him once he had ordered to be left alone, so she turned around and left, with the jewel locked inside her palm.

-.- back to her chamber -.-

Kagome was sitting on her windowsill and looking up at the starry sky through her window.

She was still pondering about the one word that had been haunting her ever since she exited his chamber.

Why?

Was she not welcome here anymore? Was she becoming a bother?

But no matter what, she still couldn't believe the fact that Sesshoumaru gave her the Shikon no Tama, the jewel he had risked his life for to get it.

She looked at the jewel that rested at the center of her palm. _'In search of this thing, he had gotten himself severely injured...'_

His words still echoed inside her mind.

_"Use it to recover your wings...and go back to your home..."_

_"You do not belong here..."_

A sad expression formed on her gentle face. _'How can I leave you behind after all that you've been through...to find this jewel...in order to give me back my wings...?'_

And then, something outside the window caught her attention and she raised her eyes up to the sky.

Several stripes of white light descended from the dark sky and disappeared before it reached the horizon.

_'Shooting stars...they're so beautiful...'_ she thought dreamily. _'If I was granted a wish for witnessing this, I would wish...to be able to stay by his side forever...'_

Kagome jumped up from the windowsill. _'Whether he finds me a bother or not...there's still something I have to do first...'_

With her decision set, she hurried out of her room into the long hall.

_'I'll use Tenseiga on Sesshoumaru-sama again...and then...then I'll tell him that I want to st'_

Her thoughts were cut off when a voice halted her in the middle of the hallway.

"Where do you think you're going?"

A shadow moved out of the darkness into the moonlight and towards Kagome.

It was Rin. She was wearing a simple yellow yukata, with her long black hair tied into a thin braid resting on her left shoulder. Her expression was serious.

"R-Rin-san," Kagome said surprised. "I was just planning to go to Sesshoumaru-sama's cha"

"Sesshoumaru-sama is none of your concern anymore," Rin cut her off.

"Eh?" Kagome gave her a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean?!" Rin spat angrily. "You're the one responsible for Sesshoumaru-sama's injury!! If you had never existed or come here in the first place, he would never had risked his life to complete the jewel!!"

Kagome widened her eyes. "B-but I just wanted to"

"After you came to live here, everything's been a mess!! Sesshoumaru-sama has been injured twice already for your sake! Aren't you satisfied with that?!" she continued, with tears stinging her eyes and a trembling voice. "Why won't you just leave him alone?! Does he also have to die for your sake???"

Kagome was shocked deeply by her sudden outburst. She was completely at a loss for words. The human girl did exaggerate at some point but what she said was true.

A powerful demon like Sesshoumaru had been severely wounded twice because of her. No excuse could ever cover up this fact.

Both stood there in silence, facing each other, until Rin averted her gaze and turned around to hide her teary eyes.

"If you want to see Sesshoumaru-sama so badly, I won't stop you," she said, a lot calmer than before. "But if you truly care about him...you'll know what you should do."

With that said, she walked away, leaving Kagome alone in the quiet hallway.

-.- later that night -.-

_"Use it to recover your wings...and go back to your home..."_

_"You do not belong here..."_

Was he too harsh on her by saying that?

The demon lord kept asking himself the same question after the girl left him alone just as he had told her to.

He knew it was for the best if she got her wings back and went home. She would have to go back eventually, when the moon reaches the right shape.

But why did his heart feel so empty at the thought of Kagome returning to the moon? Did he honestly want her to leave?

Why couldn't he give a proper answer to such a simple question?

"Jaken," he called.

His loyal servant soon appeared next to the bed. "Yes milord."

"Have Kagome summoned to my chamber."

"Euhm...Sesshoumaru-sama...the girl...," Jaken stuttered.

Sesshoumaru raised a brow. "What about her?" he demanded.

"Well...she...she left milord."

He widened his eyes at once and jumped up from his pillow.

"WHAT?!!!"

-.- meanwhile -.-

Beyond the demon lord's knowledge, a group of intruders had successfully arrived on Earth (remember the shooting stars before?).

They all hid themselves in the part of the forest with the highest density of greenery and waited patiently for the right moment to take action.

Queen Moira was looking around and trying to sense her daughter's presence. But she had no success at all.

One of the gold-armored imperial guards returned from his exploring and knelt down behind the queen. "The area is clear, Moira-sama."

"Good," she approved and turned to her six daughters. "Remember what your father had told you. Take no action before you've found out about Kagome's location," she said.

Five of her daughters nodded but one of them just dropped her gaze to the grass at her feet.

"Kikyou?"

Kikyou looked up, only to find her mother standing in front of her. "Y-yes mother?"

"I know you want to search for her too but it's for the best if you paid more attention to your wedding," Moira told her.

"I know mother," she sighed.

The remaining princesses went to their big sister. "Don't worry onee-sama, we will bring her back safely," they reassured her.

Moira put her hand on her shoulder. "Let's go."

Kikyou nodded. "Be careful," she said to her sisters and summoned her white wings together with the queen.

And the both of them disappeared into the dark sky.

At the same time, three imperial guards returned from searching for leads involving Kagome's whereabouts. One of them knelt down before the second to oldest princess. She had long brown curls and blue eyes, just like queen Moira, and was wearing a long brown robe with a wide hood attached to it. Her younger siblings were standing behind her, all wearing the same kind of robe-like garment, only in different colors.

[AN: There are seven imperial guards in total because Moira and Kikyou took 2 more with them when they arrived to Earth.]

"Kururo-sama, we've found a clue leading to Kagome-sama," the guard reported as he handed something over to the princess.

Kururo widened her blue eyes and gasped.

After a short moment, she managed to speak again. "C-continue to pinpoint her exact location...we will await your return," she ordered.

"Yes princess!" the guards acknowledged and they departed again.

After watching the guards disappear behind the trees again, one of the younger princesses stepped forward to Kururo. "Nee-sama, what kind of clue did we find?"

Kururo turned around to her younger sisters to let them see what she was holding in her hands.

Everybody gasped and widened their eyes in shock.

"N-nee-sama, these...these are..."

Kururo put up a serious expression as she looked down at the beautiful pair of feathered wings in her hands.

"Kagome's wings..."

-.- meanwhile -.-

At the other end of the forest, wandered a lonely girl. Her loose raven-black hair danced as the cold breeze from the South kissed her goodbye. Her light-blue yukata didn't offer her much protection against the low temperature of the night, but that didn't stop her from walking deeper into the forest.

Her lips formed a sad smile as she tightened her grip on the marble in her palm. _'I'm lost...but...how can I be...if I have no destination at all?'_ she sighed inwardly.

_'Why don't you go back?'_ a voice in her head asked.

Kagome dropped her face. _'I can't...just like Rin-san said...I'll only cause trouble to Sesshoumaru-sama. He might die the next time protecting me.'_

_'If you have no place to return to and nowhere to go on this planet...why don't you use the jewel you're holding in your hand?'_

She stopped walking and opened her hand to look at the jewel. _'I can use this to recover my wings and go back to Celes...but...'_

_'But you don't want to leave, right?'_

Kagome held the jewel close to her chest. She was surprised at realizing what she really felt but she wasn't happy about it.

_'Since when have I become so used to being by his side?'_

She snapped out of it when a voice hissed from behind her.

"Ssssssshikon no Tama..."

Kagome quickly ran forward and turned around, only to meet a pair of yellow eyes with slit black pupils.

Her eyes widened in fear as she watched the pair of eyes rise into the air above her.

The black shadow reflected the moonlight and took the form of a huge snake. The pale color of the moonlight made it look like a white snake with a black striped pattern on its back.

"Ssssshikon no Tama...give it to me," the creature hissed, its thin split tongue nearly touching Kagome's face.

"No!!" Kagome refused and backed away.

"Impudent girl!" the snake said and crawled forward while raising its huge head higher into the air above the girl.

Kagome watched in terror at the huge youkai in front of her as its shadow slowly swallowed hers and those of her surroundings.

"I'll devour you together with the jewel!" And the snake opened its huge mouth, revealing two razor-sharp teeth.

Kagome wanted to run away and cry for help but somehow she couldn't. Her legs wouldn't listen to her and her voice refused to work.

Right before she could feel the sharp teeth digging into her flesh and the deadly poison seep into her veins, a loud cry echoed in her ears.

"SANKON TESSOU!!!"

She held in her breath when the snake's blood splattered all over her in a split second. Without blinking, she witnessed how the cold-blooded creature became sliced apart and how the pieces cascaded to the grass.

Her lifesaver landed onto the green carpet as well at a distance from her.

She could faintly see that the shadow was starting to walk into her direction.

"No need to thank me, now hand over the Shikon no Tama," the person spoke.

Kagome took a step backwards, holding the jewel ever so tightly against her chest. _'H-he's after the Shikon no Tama too??'_ she thought scared.

The shadow stepped into the brighter area and stopped.

Kagome narrowed her eyes. _'Silver hair...white dog-ears...red outfit...huh...wait a minute!'_

"I-it's you!!" she gasped aloud.

Now the stranger narrowed his eyes. "Y-you are...?"

* * *

Sorry for another cliffhanger. School is starting tomorrow and I'm getting quite busy now. I can't promise you anything about my pace of updates but I'll still try to update within 10 days. Please forgive me if I can't update within that time limit. Anyway, hope you liked this chapter and please do look forward to the next one!!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Sorry...haven't thought about an appropriate title yet.**

No doubt, Kagome's lifesaver is Inuyasha :). We'll find out something about the reason behind Kikyou's hatred towards our main character. And then...the moment you've all been waiting for...Kagome will bump into the humans again who had dared to torn off her wings. What will happen next? Look forward to the next chapter!!

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**(o)nee-sama:** big sister  
**sankon tessou: **soul-shattering iron claws, a claw-attack used by Inuyasha

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**Wake-Robin:** Thanks! I had fun writing it! What would happen next? Just wait and find out yourself ne?

**CryingDeath: **Thank you!! I'll try to update as soon as possible!

**Techi 0263: **I'm glad to hear you like it so far :). And you're welcome about the e-mails. Don't worry, I won't let one of my main characters die hehe.

**Avid Reader: **Hahaha yeah, no doubt about it :). He's just still in denial.

**anime-lavuh: **Yeah pretty fast, but then again, I don't like dragging things out because it would be bored for me to write. Hope it wasn't too fast in your opinion.

**Kirei Baka Kasumi:** Thank you!! So many question... haha, they will be answered, it's only a matter of time so please be patient with me hihi.

**delusionalck:** No not at all, I should be thanking you for telling me those things. But I still want to respond to your remarks though. First of all, yes my story is based on a Chinese fairytale, but I never said it would be completely following elements of the fairytale. I just gave the winged ones clothes that I find beautiful. In the fairytale, they never really described their clothing so...I just used my imagination. Yeah, someone else told me about the "dogdemon" and "demonlord" mistake so I've told myself not to make the same mistakes again (but I was just to lazy to correct them in the earlier chapters). And about the choice of names, I just chose them because I like to, I mean, it's just a fanfic...so I didn't really thought about the origin of the names and such. It's true that I've used the wrong elements that doesn't fit in the era I used to write my story in, this is something I will prevent in my following stories. You didn't offend me at all :). At least, it didn't sound as a flame to me at all haha. Thanks for telling me these things, I'll be sure to think about them thoroughly next time I start a story!

**Destiny's Avenger: **Thank you very much!!

**Why?What?Shutup: **I'm happy to hear you like it!

**SkyBlueSunShine:** Hahaha, readers are really not very used to reading Rin being bad, but that's normal I guess :).

**Hieis/Kuramas-Angel:** I'm so happy that you still decided to read the story despite of the summary hihihi. Thanks for reviewing!

**stoictimer: **Thanks! I enjoyed writing it hihihi, hope you will keep reading this story :).

**DarkAngelB: **I'm sorry to hear that, but I'm glad that reading my story cheered you up hehehe. About the promises he made to Kikyou...he won't really be able to keep it...I guess you've realised it after reading this chapter. But don't worry, she won't die. Thanks for your review!!

**dragon of hope:** Thanks! I will update as soon as possible!

**Jirurianu: **Thank you very much! I'm glad I managed to write a good fighting scene because I really had trouble with it (despite the fact that I like writing these kind of scenes), especially with choosing the right words and such.

**corrupted-miko: **Haha don't worry, those three words will come later on. Why Kikyou hates Kagome so much? That will be explained in the next chapter, a part of it hehe.

**Guardian-of-the-night:** Thanks thanks!! I like it when readers tell me which part they liked of the chapter hihihi.

**just 1 girl:** Thanks!! I would indeed ruin it with a lemon. Yes, a kiss wouldn't hurt but I still need to "prepare" them for that scene hehe. It would be strange for a reader if I suddenly put in such a scene while the both of them are still denying or oblivious of their feelings for each other, right? Hope you're still following me haha or am I just delusional?

**drow goddess:** Thank you!!

Posted: 6 September 2004  
Last Edited: 6 September 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	13. Regained Justice

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
-- --: locations  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
capslocked words: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Regained Justice**

"I'm sorry, I must have scared you to death when I sliced up that snake," he apologized as he threw some dry twigs into the fire.

"No, don't apologize," Kagome smiled. "If it weren't for you, I would probably be in its stomach right now."

The silver-haired dog demon was sitting in front a campfire near a creek while Kagome was busy washing the bloodstains out of her light-blue yukata.

"I'm sorry that you had to lend me your fire rat's fur," she said as she went back to the fire to dry her yukata and sat down while adjusting the red robe that was big enough to cover up most parts of her body.

"No problem. I was the one who got you drenched in blood so it's the least I could do as an apology," he replied. "And besides, I still have this," he added, pointing at the white garment he always wore beneath the red one. "By the way, I'm Inuyasha," he introduced himself. "What's your name?"

"Kagome," Kagome replied.

The two of them stared into the calm fire in silence and listened engrossed to the snapping sounds of the burning wood.

"You're with my brother...aren't you?" he suddenly asked out of the blue.

Kagome slightly nodded.

"Then...why isn't he with you right now?"

"I left..." Kagome responded with an awkward expression on her face.

Inuyasha raised a brow. "Aha! So you were finally aware of his evil side and decided to leave him huh? Oh well, better later than n"

"Stop that!!" she cut him off angrily. "Sesshoumaru-sama isn't evil!! He's very kind to me!! He...he..." Tears stung her eyes and she continue with a dry throat. "...he even risked his life t-to..."

"To get the Shikon no Tama for you," the hanyou helped her.

Kagome looked at the jewel in her hand and sniffed. "He's already done enough for me," she whispered.

"Why?" Inuyasha asked.

She raised her gaze to the dog demon. "Eh?"

"Why did he give you the Shikon no Tama?"

Kagome hesitated before answering. "To give me back...my wings..."

Inuyasha thought for a moment. "So...Naraku wasn't lying when he referred to you as the 'angel'," he recalled.

A small smile formed on her face. "Well, I'm not really an angel...I just need my wings in order for me to return to the moon," she explained.

The hanyou widened his eyes. "The moon?!"

She nodded shyly. "Y-you believe me?"

His lips curled into a grin. "Well, if the woman I care for can be resurrected from her death with clay and mud, what else is there that I cannot believe?"

Kagome pulled up her knees to her chest and covered her entire lower body with the red robe. "The woman you care for...you mean the woman I saw standing beside you when we were back at the castle?"

"Yeah, her name is Kikyou," Inuyasha nodded.

_'Kikyou...no wonder I couldn't feel the presence of life within her...she's been resurrected like that...'_ she concluded inwardly.

"Why did she try to kill me?" she asked, remembering the arrow that would have ended her life, had Sesshoumaru not caught it on time.

Inuyasha sighed and took a moment before replying. "She's a miko...a priestess. Before you came, she was the most powerful one of this era," he began.

"But I'm not a priestess" she argued.

"No, but your purifying powers exceeds hers greatly. I guess you could say that she's jealous of you and feels threatened by your existence."

Kagome placed her chin on top of her pulled-up knees. "Somehow, I feel that that's not the entire reason behind her hatred towards me..."

The hanyou dropped his gaze to the fire again. "She wasn't always like this," he sighed sadly. "She was once a very loving and caring person, but because she died filled with regret and betrayal, she had become such a cold and harsh person after being resurrected unwillingly."

And then, all became silent again.

"What are you thinking right now?" he asked her curiously.

Kagome stared up at the sky. "Say...do you believe in reincarnation?"

Inuyasha gave her a puzzled look. "I don't know...why do you ask?"

"Because I think it's no coincidence that my eldest sister on the moon is also named Kikyou and the fact that she looks exactly the same as the Kikyou here on Earth," she explained.

"Another Kikyou on the moon?!" the dog demon widened his eyes. "But how is that possible???"

"Well, you said this Kikyou who became resurrected is filled with nothing but wrath and hatred didn't you?" she reasoned.

He nodded.

"But you also said she once had a caring and loving side before she passed away in regret," she continued. "I think that that part of her soul was able to reincarnate and became the eldest princess of our kingdom Celes."

"But the hatred and pain she carried to her afterlife probably remained on Earth and lingered around her grave until she got resurrected," she added.

"So you're saying that the Kikyou I know now is merely a vessel carrying the part of the soul that was filled with regret and hatred?" Inuyasha summarized.

"It might be possible, but it's just a thought," Kagome smiled. "I'm only saying that the part of Kikyou's soul you once knew could have reincarnated into my eldest sister on the moon."

Inuyasha smiled warmly. "Thank you."

Somehow, it felt comforting to hear that the Kikyou he once loved hadn't been consumed by her hatred and vanished into nothingness.

But then he suddenly remembered something. "Oh shit!"

"What's wrong?" Kagome asked.

"Are your clothes dry yet?" he asked, as he stood up.

Kagome placed her hand on her yukata. "Yeah almost. Why?"

"Quickly, pull your clothes on. You must leave here as soon as possible. Before she realizes you're here when she comes back," he said worriedly.

_'She...?'_ Kagome thought bewildered as she took her clothes with her into some bushes. "You mean Kikyou?" she asked while slipping into her yukata.

"Hurry, there's no time to explain everything. All I can say is that you better not let her find you," Inuyasha explained.

After putting on her slightly wet yukata, Kagome came out of the bushes again with Inuyasha's red robe in her hands. "What if she finds me?"

Inuyasha took his fire rat's fur. "She'll kill you," he said bluntly. "Now go, please...I don't want Kikyou's hands to be stained with your innocent blood."

"Thank you," Kagome smiled warmly. "Although I don't know you very well, but thank you. I might never see you again after this, so take care."

The hanyou returned a smile. "I'm glad I was able to meet you Kagome. I sincerely hope you will find your true happiness...whether back at your kingdom on the moon or here...by my brother's side."

Kagome blushed before turning half a circle. She looked over her shoulder at him and bode him farewell. "Goodbye, Inuyasha."

And then she left, disappearing into the woods again.

-.- meanwhile -.-

"Thank you so much for your help miko-sama, how can I ever repay you?" the man said as he closed the door of the wooden shed behind him and bowed deeply..

It was a middle-aged man with short dark curls and dark-brown eyes, dressed in a simple mud-green shirt with short sleeves and a pair of shorts of the same color.

"There's nothing you can do to repay me," Kikyou replied dully, her expression as bored as always. "But I do like to know how your brother got that huge gash on his back." She said as her eyes shifted to the sleeping individual on the bed through the small window of the shed.

When she arrived, the older of the two siblings was bleeding immensely at his back. The huge cut on his back seemed to be inflicted by a sword-like weapon but none like any other within her knowledge-area.

"It's those damned imperial guards of Celes...or whatever they called themselves!" the man cursed aloud.

Kikyou raised a brow. _'Imperial guards...? Celes...?'_

"If only we had never torn off her wings...things would never have ended up like this..." the man continued, his voice trailing off.

"Torn off whose wings?" the miko inquired.

The dark-haired man turned to her. "That girl's!! The winged one!!" he exclaimed frustrated. "Those guards came for her...they found her wings and demanded answers. We tried to sell them before but everyone called us freaks and avoided contact with us because they thought we might be cursed for taking the wings of an angel. It's all her fault...that witch!!"

While he continued to utter curses and words that were meant to remain inward, Kikyou became busy with her own thoughts.

_'A winged angel who's origin's a mystery...why does this sound so familiar...?'_ she mused, placing a finger on her chin.

Suddenly, some words of an earlier conversation came into her mind.

_"By the way, did it ever cross your mind that the Shikon no Tama grants the holder the power to do anything? Like...healing the wounds of our pretty angel here for example..."_

Kikyou's eyes narrowed in suspicion, as if she could see the raven-haired girl before her, standing next to the demon lord. _'So the girl's wings were torn off huh? That's why Sesshoumaru wanted the Shikon no Tama so badly...'_ she concluded in her thoughts.

Her lips formed a satisfying grin. _'Well, I guess it's none of my business now since I will never get the chance to meet her again...'_

She snapped back into reality and turned to the man again, who was still busy with being delusional. "I shall take my leave now," she stated plainly and turned to leave.

The human snapped out of it as well. "Y-Yes of course! Goodbye miko-sama, thank you so much for saving my brother's life."

-.-

As Kikyou traveled through the forest with her long bow in her hand and her quiver on her back, she couldn't stop thinking about the mysterious girl. She kept wondering whether the girl had already returned to whence she came or just stayed obediently under the demon lord's protection.

Her endless pondering ended when she felt a presence approaching from the opposite direction.

She quickly hid herself behind a thick tree and waited patiently.

After a while, her patience was rewarded with something she had expected the least. Her eyes widened in disbelief when she saw the raven-haired girl walking lively pass the tree she was hiding behind.

_'Why is she here?!'_ she thought annoyed; even more annoyed when she felt the presence of the jewel on the girl.

Her grip on her bow tightened. _'That Sesshoumaru...he should have kept his word!'_

God knows how much she wanted to notch an arrow and pierce it's head right through the girl's heart. But somehow, she just couldn't do it.

The will of her body totally conflicted with that of her mind and the miko ended up watching the mystery girl disappear into the woods again.

Yet amidst her frustration and disappointment, she still found a small comfort. "Girl...you're lucky I had decided not to stain my hands with your blood," she muttered after her. An upward curl formed on her lips, but it wasn't a friendly one. "...but that doesn't mean I would prevent you from digging your own grave..." she added, reminding herself of what actually lies in the direction the girl had gone to.

-.-.-

Oblivious to what was lying at the end of her path, Kagome kept walking forward.

Her mind was set on avoiding contact with the miko Inuyasha had warned her for but she really didn't see this coming.

She halted her step the moment she stepped into the small clearing and saw the small wooden shed at its center. She could see light coming from the inside.

But what shocked her the most was the man who stood in front of it.

She remembered him. There was no way she could forget, not after what they had done to her. She would recognize the ones who tore off her wings even if they were reduced to ashes.

Fortunately, the man was busy chopping logs on a thick, wide trunk and didn't notice her presence.

Kagome had planned to walk away unnoticed. She would have succeeded, if it were not for the cunning arrow that hit a tree right behind her, which totally gave away her presence and location.

TSJOK

"Who's there!!?" the man asked alerted, his eyes darting around in suspicion.

It was only a matter of time when his dark-brown eyes caught Kagome's existence. "YOU!!!" he cried wide-eyed.

His stare sent shivers down Kagome's spine and she completely forgot about the treacherous arrow.

AN: By the way, it's late in the evening.

"Curse you, you witch!! It's all your fault!!" the human cried angrily, as he started walking into her direction with the axe in his hand.

"S-stop it...don't come any closer!!" Kagome cried and backed away until she hit a tree with her back.

Paralyzed by fear, she watched how the axe rose into the air and came down at her with great speed.

"No!!!" she cried and put up both her arms out of reflex.

SLASH

A burning pain shot from her left arm through her entire body and her legs finally began to obey her again. Kagome quickly stumbled away from the tree before giving the human another chance to raise his axe.

"Have...to get away..." she said to herself, broken in gasps.

But after a couple of steps, her legs lost their strength again and Kagome collapsed forward to the grass.

THUMP

_'No!!'_ she screamed in her mind and turned to look over her shoulder behind her.

Traveling halfway, her eyes paused as they caught a glimpse of red and white behind the trees. Her eyes widened. _'K-Kikyou!!?'_ she thought shocked as she saw the black-haired woman.

Although the miko was protected by the shadows of the night, Kagome swore she could see the faint smirk on her face. Was it really her?

But she didn't have time to pay any more attention to that, realizing out of the corner of her eye that the axe-user was already standing near her feet.

Completely forgetting the pain, Kagome started to fear for her life.

Surprisingly enough, she didn't feel the need to avert her gaze or close her eyes. She just followed the sharp edge of the axe as it rose up to the sky next to the moon.

_'I wish I could see him one last time...'_ she thought to herself with tears stinging her eyes.

In slow motion, she watched how the axe began its path downwards at her.

Yet only one name consumed her thoughts as she saw her death approaching.

_'Sesshoumaru...'_

CLASH

Her eyes widened.

One teardrop escaped the corner of her eyes and rolled down her cheek.

_'Am I...dreaming...?'_

There he was, standing next to the human and blocking the axe with one of his swords.

"S-Sesshou...maru..." she whispered with disbelief filling her eyes.

-.-

"S-Sesshou...maru..." He heard her soft whisper.

He was truly shocked when the scent of her blood caught his nose and he didn't hesitate for one second before dashing through the forest.

God knows how relieved he was.

He couldn't possibly imagine never hearing that voice calling his name again, had he not arrived on time. Angriness filled his heart when he saw the red gash on her left arm.

He pushed the human away from her with one swift motion and quickly knelt down by her side. With his free arm, he helped the girl to sit up.

It took him by surprise when Kagome hastily crawled up to his chest and clasped his haori with a death grip.

He could feel her trembling and knew the girl was crying by the infrequent rise and fall of her shoulders.

"Sesshoumaru-sama...you're here...I'm not dreaming...you've really come..." she sobbed.

Somehow, Sesshoumaru felt a bit disappointed to hear the honorific suffix again. "I told you to go home didn't I? Why didn't you use the Shikon no Tama?" he asked while casting a worried look at her injured arm.

But Kagome didn't answer.

The demon lord frowned when he realized the girl wasn't calming down even with his presence. _'What is she so afraid of...?' _he wondered as he looked at her face.

The girl had squeezed her eyes shut and two salty creeks were still streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks.

The amount of fear and anxiety that radiated off of her bewildered the demon lord. But when he raised his gaze to the one who had dared to threaten her life, he narrowed his eyes in suspicion. _'This human...I've seen him before...'_

"This is none of your business demon!! So stay out of it!!" the man cried angrily.

"Everything involving this girl is my business," he stated in reply. "You've got a lot of nerve to hurt her."

The human smirked. "So she belongs to you huh? Then...where the hell were you when I tore off her wings??"

Sesshoumaru's eyes flashed red for a moment as they widened. He now completely understood why Kagome wouldn't calm down in his embrace. "So you're the one who tore off her wings..." he said with a low growl.

"Yeah! It was my brother and I who did it! Her kin have wounded my brother and taken away our treasure! So it's payback time!!" he said brutally.

The dog demon's blood boiled even more at the insolent reply of the human that contained not even a single drip of regret.

But something he said had surprised Sesshoumaru. _'Her kin came...? They took her wings?' _ he thought as he looked down at Kagome, who didn't seem to have heard what the human said. _'Impossible...! They aren't supposed to come this soon...!'_ he reasoned inwardly.

"Do not make any more excuses human. There's no way you can escape your horrible death now," he growled furiously as he sent him a glare of death.

At the same time, he urged Kagome to stand up. The girl slowly stood up obediently but still leaned onto him for support.

Sesshoumaru squeezed her shoulder comfortingly with his clawed hand and lowered his face to her ear.

"Close your eyes Kagome," he whispered to her.

In response to his words, the girl turned to him completely and leaned her forehead onto his chest.

The demon lord then turned to look at the human again as his grip on Toukijin's hilt tightened in fury. _'Kagome...I shall give you back the justice you deserve...'_ he promised inwardly.

Not giving the human a chance to escape, he immediately raised his sword in the air.

"SOURYUUHA!!" he cried and swung Toukijin with a curve downwards.

A blue disastrous twister-like attack erupted at the demon lord's summon and moved horizontally towards the human with great speed.

With an expressionless face, Sesshoumaru watched how the disgusting individual and the wooden shed behind him became swallowed by his attack and exploded.

A huge cloud of dust rose from the earth, accompanied with a gush of wind spreading everywhere from the center of the explosion.

The demon lord welcomed the sandy breeze with half shut eyes as he raised his arm to protect Kagome from it with his long, wide sleeve.

After the wind and dust settled down, he lowered his arm and slightly pulled away to look at the girl. "Are you okay?"

She nodded but refused to look up at him.

With a finger placed on her chin, Sesshoumaru gently forced her to look at him.

He was indeed pained to see her red and teary eyes, but as always, Sesshoumaru wasn't the best one to show or express his true thoughts or feelings.

How he admired the fact that her beautiful blue orbs could hold so many different emotions. Fear, relief, happiness, sadness, frustration...and another emotion that was unknown to the demon lord.

He was about to find out what emotion that could be, if it were not for an incoming hazard that caught his attention.

Right when he prepared to dodge it together with Kagome, a shock of pain ran through his body. _'Chikusho...I haven't completely healed yet...'_ he cursed inwardly.

In the last bit of seconds, Sesshoumaru decided that Kagome's life was more important and he pushed her aside. The second after he did that, a long thin object hit him straight on at his shoulder with great speed and forced the demon lord backwards.

WHAMMM

Sesshoumaru coughed blood after he made a loud impact with the tree behind him.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!!!" her worried voice echoed in his ears and through the forest.

"C-curse you...m-miko..." he groaned in pain as blood seeped out of the corner of his mouth.

-.-

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She nodded. She was truly happy to see him again, but she could face him at all.

Deep down inside, she blamed herself greatly for being so weak. _'Stupid Kagome...you've ended up being saved again! Have you forgotten that Sesshoumaru is still recovering from his previous injuries?!'_ she scolded herself.

A finger below her chin made her snap back into reality and she realized she was looking straight into the pair of gold-amber eyes she had tried to avoid.

For a moment, she swore she could see a flash of hurt in his eyes.

Was he pained to realize she hadn't returned to the moon? Or maybe...?

Before she could finish her thoughts, Kagome saw Sesshoumaru wince in pain and the next thing she knew was being pushed aside by the demon lord.

WHAMMM

She widened her eyes when she heard Sesshoumaru cough after the loud sound of collision. She quickly turned around, only to find the demon lord pinned to a nearby tree by an arrow in his shoulder.

Blood was coming out of the corner of his mouth.

"Sesshoumaru-sama!!!!" she cried in horror.

"C-curse you...m-miko..." she heard him growl.

_'Miko...?'_ she thought shocked and followed his line of vision to behind her.

Kagome froze. Back then, when she saw her between the trees, she thought it was just her imagination. But now, she had to believe her eyes.

There she was, standing near the crater of the explosion with a long bow in her hand. Her long black hair and the long sleeves of her white robe billowed sideward in the wind as she took the stance of having just fired an arrow.

"K-Kikyou..." she said her name with a gasp.

* * *

Oops, another cliffhanger. Sorry!!! Hey, noticed that I've updated earlier than my previous chapters? I told you my muses are most diligent when I'm sitting in the train hahaha :). Anyway I hope you liked this chapter despite the evil cliffie.

Oh by the way, I remember saying once that the Kikyou on the moon is not related to the one on Earth...well I kind of changed my mind a little since everybody's so curious about it and made Kagome tell Inuyasha about that possibility, I hope you liked it :). And how did you like the revenge on those who tore off Kagome's wings? Please let me know!!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

-.-.-.-.-

**Next chapter: Unconditional forgiveness**

-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru's pinned to a tree...so Kagome will die if nobody's there to save her from Kikyou's next arrow. Guess who will be there to save her? A danger has passed but then another danger arose...this time someone's blaming the demon lord for her youngest sister's cruel fate and tries to kill him. Did Sesshoumaru really do something wrong? Will he be forgiven on time? Look forward to the next installment!!

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**sou-ryuu-ha:** Means 'azure dragon blast', from what I've seen in the third movie, this is the ultimate attack of Toukijin. Like 'bakuryuuha' is the ultimate attack of Inuyasha's Tetsusaiga.  
**miko: **priestess  
**chikusho:** shit/damn

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES ON REVIEWS:**

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Thank you very much! I like Sesshoumaru being in character too, it makes him so cool :).

**Zheariali: **Aw...you got a Rin-plushie? That's sooo cute!!

**Shiroi senshi: **Sorry about the constant cliffhangers, I guess I just can't seem to suppress myself from using them hehehe. Thanks for reviewing!!

**Dark Dragon34: **Thanks!! Glad you liked it!

**anime-lavuh: **Pfew...I'm relieved to hear that hihihi. Thanks for reviewing!

**Wake-Robin:** I'm glad you liked it! Hope you liked this chapter as well!

**Mischa: **Thanks! I will!!

**silverstargazing: **Yup and I'm leaving it on a cliffie again...I'm insufferable am I not? Mwuhahahaha!!

**Inukamisashi: **Hey, don't worry about that :). I'm glad you reviewed this chapter hihi. Thanks for telling me which part you liked!

**Angelic 0263: **No...thank YOU for reviewing! It's really encouraging you know :).

**Kirei Baka Kasumi: **Thanks!! I hope you're satisfied with what happened to those who tore off Kagome's wings :).

**ISpikedThePunch: **Here's more! Still loving it? Thanks for reviewing!

**Jirurianu: **Thank you!! Inuyasha didn't recognize her in the first place because she was under the snake's blood :) and because it was a bit dark.

**writerlover101: **Thanks! I'm glad you like my story!

**stoictimer:** Thanks!! It's encouraging to hear that!

**Kyia:** Hey there!! Thanks!! I'm glad you're back again :). Hmm still thinking about whether I should make them two meet or not hehe.

**Why?What?Shutup:** Hahaha yeah, they're so stubborn :). Thanks for reviewing!

Posted: 11 September 2004  
Last Edited: 11 September 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	14. Unconditional forgiveness

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
--capslocked words--: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Unconditional forgiveness**

**AN: **By the way, you might be wondering why it was possible for Kikyou's arrow to pin down the demon lord while the same arrow got repelled before. It's because Kagome's purifying power that got transferred into Tenseiga is gone. When Sesshoumaru used Tenseiga to defeat Naraku, he used up all of the holy powers that resided in the fang. It also explains why the hole in Sesshoumaru's stomach isn't recovering at a normal pace: Naraku's miasma is slowing the healing process since nothing is purifying it.

"Run Kagome!! Run away!!" Sesshoumaru's voice echoed in her ears.

But Kagome couldn't. She didn't know whether it's because her body that wouldn't listen to her or her mind that doesn't want to leave the demon lord behind.

"Don't panic Sesshoumaru...I didn't come to collect her soul only." Kikyou smirked as she drew another arrow. "I came for yours as well."

Kagome widened her eyes. _'She's going to kill Sesshoumaru too??'_

Without further thinking, she ran towards Sesshoumaru and stood protectively in front of him with her arms spread out.

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened. "Step aside."

"I...I won't let you die..." she responded determinedly.

"This Sesshoumaru won't die that easily! Now go!! Use the Shikon no Tama and go!!" he ordered, never sounding so discomposed before.

_'Go home...?'_ Kagome thought sadly as she slowly dropped her arms and took out the jewel from her sleeve. _'But I...'_

Tears welled up in her eyes as she turned around to the demon lord.

"Use it and go ho..." Sesshoumaru repeated but his voice trailed off when he saw a teardrop traveling down her pink cheek.

"I never said I wanted to..." Kagome finally said with a trembling voice as she balled her hands, pressing the jewel against the center of her palm. "Why are you pushing me away like that? Do you hate me that much?" she sobbed as she kept staring into his gold-amber orbs with her navy-blue ones.

Sesshoumaru's eyes hardened. He wanted to answer her but he couldn't find the words. _'Kagome...I...'_

"It doesn't matter anymore..." Kagome smiled awkwardly through her tears and turned around again.

The demon lord stretched out his arm to stop her from turning away from him. But he realized painfully that he couldn't do it because of the distance between them. Just when his lips parted to speak, the voice of Kikyou caught their attention again.

"How sweet..." the miko said wryly. "I'll just send the both of you to the other world with one arrow, now isn't that nice of me?"

She raised her bow and pulled the string backwards with all her might, making sure the arrow would be fast enough to pierce through Kagome's body and kill the demon lord as well.

Not wavering for even a second, Kikyou released her arrow.

-- FWISSHHHHHH --

Horror and fear filled Sesshoumaru's heart as the sound of the arrow soaring through the air approached them with great speed.

Using all his strength, or what was left of it since he was still recovering; he tried to pull out the arrow that pinned him to the tree behind him. But unfortunately, every time he touched the arrow, an electric current ran through his hand to his entire body, rendering him paralyzed for several seconds. _'C-chikusho!!'_ he cursed inwardly as he looked at his burned claw.

He quickly looked up at Kagome, who was still standing protectively in front of him. _'No...Kagome...Kagome!!!'_ his mind screamed desperately.

Suddenly the sound of another arrow caught his sensitive ears.

-- FFFWWIIISSHHHHH --

A shimmering arrow suddenly flew out from behind the trees and hit the arrowhead that was meant to pierce through Kagome's heart.

-- CLASH --

Both arrows changed direction after the collision and stabbed the earth near Kagome's feet.

Kagome widened her eyes as she looked down at the long, thin artifact that was reflecting the moonlight perfectly. _'A silver arrow...? I-it couldn't be...'_

Before she could finish her thought, a voice suddenly called out to her.

"Kagome!!!"

Shortly after that, nine shadows jumped into the clearing and positioned themselves around Kagome, with their backs turned to Kikyou.

Sesshoumaru, Kikyou and even Kagome were surprised to see the group consisting of five unknown individuals dressed in long robes of different colors, each with their hood covering their identity, accompanied by four young men in gold-coated armor.

**AN:** There were 12 of them when they arrived, but there are no battles without losses, so three of them died protecting the rest.

Kagome's eyes then caught another glimpse of silver. The one in the brown robe was holding a silver bow. That was probably the one who released the arrow that saved her life.

One of the four knights knelt down to Kagome's feet.

"We beg for your forgiveness for arriving this late Kagome-sama," he apologized politely.

Stunned by their sudden appearance, Kagome hesitatingly signaled with her hand for him to stand up. "Y-you are..."

"We're the imperial guards sent by your father, king Kronos, to save you and to bring you back to Celes," the guard explained.

Kagome's eyes traveled to the five robed individuals before her. "And they are...?"

"Why Kagome! I'm shocked!" one of the robed ones cut her off with a woman's voice. It was the one with the silver bow in her hand. "You should be very aware of the fact that there exist only one person who owns this silver bow," she said as she raised the bow to the level of her eyes.

It was truly a piece of art. The crescent-shaped component of the weapon was coated with silver and beautiful carvings could be seen on its thin surface. The handle at its center was coated with a darker material, which shape fitted the curve of one's hand perfectly. And finally, the two ends of the bow, where the ends of the string were attached, were adorned with crystals.

The robed one pulled off her hood after she said that, revealing a familiar face with blue eyes, framed with long brown locks.

"Kururo!" Kagome gasped with her hand over her mouth.

The rest of the robed ones pulled off their hoods as well, revealing the rest of her older siblings except for the eldest one. "We all came to save you Kagome!" they said in harmony. "Now let's go home. Mother and father are worried sick," one of them suggested.

"B-but" Kagome began, but was cut off by the miko's voice.

"Well what do we have here? One happy family reunion?"

All of them finally turned around to the miko. They gasped.

"No! She's not our sister everyone! She resembles her a lot but she isn't the Kikyou onee-sama we know!" Kagome quickly explained.

Kururo smirked. "I thought so...our onee-sama would never draw her bow against her own sisters," she reasoned as she pulled a silver arrow from the quiver that was hidden within her brown robe on her back and put it on her silver bow. "Who are you and why did you attempt to kill Kagome?" she demanded, drawing the string and pointing the arrow at Kikyou.

The miko responded by drawing her bow as well. "That's none of your business."

"Heh! Do you really think your measly arrows can withstand my silver ones?" the princess grinned.

"Try it and we'll see," Kikyou replied coolly.

Kagome gave her sister a worried look. "Kururo..."

"Daijoubu...there's no way her arrow will win from mine," her sister assured her without turning to her.

Both archers then released their arrows at the same time.

-- FWIIISHHHHHH --

Everyone watched tensed how the arrowheads flew towards each other.

-- CRRACKK --

With widened eyes, Kikyou saw how her arrow became split in two by the silver one.

But it didn't stop after that and continued to fly towards the miko, scratching her shoulder as it went pass her.

"Ack!!" she cried in pain, backing away while covering her shoulder with her free hand.

Kururo smiled satisfied and turned to her younger sister while lowering her silver bow. "See? I told you" she said but was cut off by Kikyou's loud voice.

"Kagome! Mark my words...don't let me ever see you again...or I will definitely kill you!!" she snarled angrily before walking away from the clearing.

Kagome relaxed after watching the miko leave. _'It's over...' _she though relieved and turned to Sesshoumaru, who was still pinned to the tree by Kikyou's arrow.

He was looking at her with eyes filled with fatigue.

_'Sesshoumaru...he's in pain...'_ she realized worriedly as she saw his exhausted expression and the drops of sweat on his forehead that glistened under de pale moonlight.

She was already moving towards the demon lord until a hand suddenly grabbed her wrist.

"Don't go closer to that demon Kagome!"

It was Kururo who spoke and she pulled Kagome to stand aside, together with the guards.

The archer turned to face Sesshoumaru and notched another silver arrow on her bow. "You must be that arrogant demon lord Kikyou onee-sama told us about."

Kagome widened her eyes. "No Kururo! He's"

"Quiet Kagome!" her sister cut her off. "I have examined your wings and verified exactly when the tragedy took place." she said, turning back to the demon lord. "You bastard!! If you had agreed to help us 3 weeks ago, Kagome's wings never would've been torn off!!"

Kagome froze. _'T-they came to Earth before...?'_ she thought surprised and shocked at the same time. _'Why...why didn't Sesshoumaru tell me about it? Three weeks ago...?'_

Suddenly she recalled the other presence she felt when she was talking to the firefly at the pond back then. _'It was him...Sesshoumaru...he was there too...when the human saw me and approached me...!!'_

All these realizations kept spinning inside her mind and numerous questions popped up one after another. _'If he was really there back then...why didn't he save me from those humans...? Why did he save me afterwards...? Why was he so kind to me...? Why did he risk his life for me...? Why?? Why???'_

Sesshoumaru scowled. "You low, dishonorable beings...," he growled angrily. Not only did the winged ones intrude his land earlier than promised; they even have the nerve to take advantage of this irritating situation.

His eyes traveled towards Kagome and he realized that her expression had saddened.

Seeing her like that, suddenly made him wonder if he really could have saved her from her cruel fate, had he not been so proud back then. _'Kagome...'_ he thought, with guilt filling his demon heart. _'Was it really my fault...? Are you blaming this Sesshoumaru as well...?'_

His thoughts were interrupted when the archer began to speak again.

"There's no way I'm going to let the chance to kill you pass me by!!" she spat and released her arrow.

-- FWISSHHHHH --

The sound of the arrow leaving the tense string made Kagome snap back into reality and she watched the silver arrow with widened eyes.

The sudden thought of never being able to see Sesshoumaru again created a sharp pain in her chest and her legs began to sprint towards the demon lord.

_'No matter what he has done...no matter how many things he has kept from me...I...I...'_ she thought with tears welling up in her eyes as she prayed she would make it in time.

She set off with her feet at the last moment and jumped towards Sesshoumaru as she squeezed her eyes shut. _'Sesshoumaru...!!'_

-- TSJAK --

Kagome slowly opened her eyes. _'Did I...make it...?'_

She knew her whole body was trembling as she saw her unsteady hands that were holding onto the white haori before her face.

Except for some numbness in her legs, she couldn't feel anything at all.

No burning pain, no stinging or shocking sensation...nothing.

Kagome dropped her gaze to her body. _'Y-yokatta...it didn't go through...'_ she thought relieved when she saw no arrowhead.

She lifted her face to look up, only to find herself gazing into a pair of wide gold-amber eyes.

She could see that he had parted his lips to speak, but she didn't get to see or hear what he wanted to say as darkness swallowed up her entire vision.

* * *

I know...it was a very sad chapter wasn't it? -grabs a tissue- I almost cried when I wrote this chapter and listened to Inuyasha&Kagome's theme at the same time. I really hope you all liked this chapter despite that it's a bit on the short side. Please look forward to the next chapter ne? 

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Incurable agony**

-.-.-.-.-

In the next chapter, we'll concentrate on Kagome only. What will her sisters and parents think of her reckless act that almost got herself killed? Will she ever be able to see Sesshoumaru again? Eventually, Kagome falls ill...what will become of her now?

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**chikusho: **damn it  
**onee-sama: **big sister  
**daijoubu:** it's okay  
**miko:** priestess  
**yokatta: **rather than 'I'm glad' or 'I'm relieved', I think you could see it more as a 'sigh in relief' in this context.  
**dakara:** that's why.../so...

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES TO REVIEWS:**

**CryingDeath:** I will I will!! Don't worry :).

**Angelic 0263: **Thanks and you're very welcome!!

**drow goddess: **Hehe, sorry for the cliffhanger (again). But glad you like it! I'll try to update as soon as possible (again) hahaha.

**Shiroi senshi: **Haha I guess you're not the only one hating Kikyou, but there's still a nice one on the moon :)! Thanks for reviewing!

**Wake-Robin:** Euhm nope, Kagome hasn't used the Shikon no Tama yet hehe. Sesshoumaru went to find Kagome and found her on time so it's a coincidence :). Hey thanks! I'm glad you're still loving it!!

**Kyia:** Thanks for letting me know!

**stoictimer: **Hahaha like the drama? Thank you!! Hahaha very creative mind you have to come up with such possibilities :), no really they're great!!

**Kirei Baka Kasumi: **Thanks! I'm glad you're pleased with it hihihi.

**Jirurianu:** Thank you very much! Hahaha I guess most main characters are either meant to be beat up or meant to be 'fluffed' up don't you agree?

**Guardian-of-the-night: **I'm glad you loved it! I wonder if this cliffie is even more evil than the previous one...hmmm...:).

**trivia: **Thanks!!

**writerlover101:** Thanks!! I'll try!!

**Mistress Koishii: **Hahaha, you know what? You're totally right :). I read about it too. But I thought most readers would be more familiar with Bakuryuuha then Kongousouha (Diamond blast thing haha forgot the name too). But thanks for reminding me!

**Dragon of Sesshomaru: **Wah! Don't throw yourself off a cliff! Here's the update!! (with another cliffhanger...oops...)

**Muki:** Thanks!!

**Why?What?Shutup: **Hahaha I wish she was so easy to kill :).

**Faile6: **Haha, which anime were you thinking about then? I would really like to know, because I haven't seen one before that resembled the beginning of this story. And euhm...it's nice of you to tell me that I have typos and syntax mistakes, but it would be even better if you could tell me where and what mistake exactly. It's easier for me to prevent them in the future chapters/stories if I knew them :). Anyhow, thanks for reviewing!!

**Anime Redneck: **I'm glad you like it! Thank you!

**INUGIRL: **I'll update as soon as possible!! Thanks!

Posted: 15 September 2004  
Last Edited: 15 September 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	15. Incurable Agony

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
-- capslocked words --: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Incurable agony**

Kagome's eyes slowly opened. _'Where...?'_

She turned her head and scanned her environment.

Wardrobes made of wood were standing against the walls, accompanied by several bookcases filled with tons of books. The ceiling had a soft orange color of the calm candlelight burning in the room. And she found herself lying in a wooden bed with sky-blue sheets and covers and white pillows.

It all seemed awfully familiar to her and eventually she realized where she was.

It was her chamber, the place she had longed returning to all this time.

But somehow, she wasn't happy to find herself being here at all.

She turned her face aside to the oblong shaped windows. Tears welled up in her eyes when she saw the planet of green and blue hanging in the evening sky.

"Sesshoumaru..." she whispered as tears escaped her eyes and wetted the white pillow beneath her.

-- KNOCK KNOCK --

Kagome quickly dried her tears with the back of her hand and carefully turned to lie on her back again. "C-come in..." she said with a hoarse voice.

Her bedroom door opened and revealed a tall brown-haired woman with blue eyes in the doorway. She was dressed in a grand soft red robe that had a wide neckline and a long silky cape running from her shoulders to the floor.

"Kagome! Thank God you've finally awoken," her mature voice spoke in relief.

"M-mother," Kagome responded. Her eyes followed the queen as she walked to her side.

"Poor Kagome...you've become thinner..." her mother wailed, sitting down on the bedside.

Kagome didn't respond to this. When she tried to sit up, a hand gently pushed her down to the mattress again.

"Your body is still too weak after being healed, you shouldn't get up."

She listened to her mother and relaxed again.

"What are you holding in your hand?" the queen suddenly asked, pointing at one of her hands.

Kagome raised her hand and realized that she had balled it up tightly.

"I tried to open it when I was healing your wounds but you wouldn't let me; even in your unconscious state," she explained.

Slowly, Kagome relaxed her fingers and opened her hand like a blooming flower.

Queen Moira was puzzled at the sight of the purplish jewel at the center of her daughter's palm. "What is it?"

"The Shikon no Tama..." Kagome replied monotonously. "It grants its beholder the power to fulfill his or her dreams and desires..."

"Sounds pretty powerful...can I see it?" the queen asked innocently.

Without suspicion, she handed the jewel over to her mother.

The chamber fell silent as her mother examined the marble. "Who gave this to you?" she asked after a short while.

"Sesshoumaru did," the princess replied bluntly.

"That demon lord???" gasped the queen with wide eyes.

Kagome scowled. "Why are you all calling him like that?! He has a name you know?!"

"But why did he give you something like this?" Moira continued, ignoring Kagome's remark.

"He risked his life to find this jewel for me so I could go home," she explained. "He's done a lot for me..."

An awkward smile formed on her lips as she stared at the ceiling. "I thought all problems would be solved after I left the castle...but things just got worse and I ended up being saved again..."

As she said that, she noticed out of the corner of her eye that the queen secretly put the Shikon no Tama into her sleeve.

"What are you doing?" she asked with narrowed eyes, turning to her mother with her full face.

"Kagome, it's for your own good. As your mother, I would never do things to hurt you. You know that, right?" Moira said as she stood up.

Kagome quickly grabbed the red sleeve of her mother. "What are you going to do with the Shikon no Tama??? Give it back!!"

"Be a good girl and let go, please," the queen pleaded.

"No mother! Give it back to me!!!" the princess snarled determined, forcing herself to a sitting position to grab the fabric more firmly.

It was the only memento she had of the demon lord and there was no way she would let it be taken away from her.

"Kagome!! How dare you talk to your mother like that!!" a stern and low voice spoke from the doorway.

It was a man dressed in a grand red robe of a darker shade than the queen's with a soft white mantle over it.

"F-father," Kagome said in surprise, but she didn't let go of her mother.

Kronos walked towards the bed. "If you still see me as your father, then listen to me and forget about your fake feelings towards that demon."

She scowled. "It's Sesshoumaru..." she corrected him brutally. "And I know what I feel."

"Don't talk back to me young lady!!" the king snapped angrily. "I don't know what he has done to bewitch you but there's no way I would let my daughter be together with a demon!!"

"I will always long to be by his side and grieve for not being able to until the day I die!! There's nothing you can do to stop me!!" Kagome stated proudly.

The king's eyes reddened in fury. "If you won't forget about him willingly, I will have no other option but to force you..."

Kagome's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by that??"

"That Shikon no Tama..." Kronos said. "...it can fulfill any kind of wish and desire. That's what you said, right?"

She widened her eyes. "Y-you wouldn't..." she said in disbelief.

"I'm sorry Kagome, but if you insist on keeping your stubborn behavior, I'll have you forget about everything that keeps you bounded to that horrible demon lord," he stated clearly.

After hearing that, Kagome pulled even harder at her mother's sleeve. "No!! You can't do that to me!! Give it back to me!! Give it"

Her loud crying came to an end when Kronos hit the base of her neck with the side of his hand.

The king watched her daughter collapse into his arms and carefully laid her back to the bed.

After pulling the covers up to her shoulders, he straightened himself up again, only to find Moira with a pained look in her eyes as they stared at their daughter.

"Maybe we should give it back to her...it is her only memento after all..." she mumbled with regret in her voice.

"We can't do that," the king responded. "If we give it back, she will surely use it to go back to that demon's side. Is that what you wish for?"

The queen hesitated but eventually shook her head. "I guess you're right..." she agreed.

Kronos went to her side and put his hands on both her upper arms. "She will understand eventually. After a while, she will forget about that demon and everything will be normal again," he comforted her.

"But what if the demon lord shares the same feelings for Kagome?" Moira argued.

He raised a brow. "A demon lord of the Earth falling in love with a princess from the moon...?! Ridiculous!!"

"Even if it is possible, there's no way he can come here and take Kagome away from us," he reasoned.

The doubt on the queen's face remained. "But what if...?"

"You worry too much my queen," the king smiled. "Before the demon has found a way to come here, we'll make sure that Kagome has forgotten about him completely. Then she would never agree to go back to Earth with him."

"How do we know it's safe to use the jewel?" Moira asked worriedly.

The king squeezed her arms gently. "That's why I want you to find out more about this Shikon no Tama before we actually use it. Do you understand?"

She nodded slightly. "I-I understand. I'll do my best."

Kronos placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "Thank you love."

And they both left Kagome's chamber, leaving Kagome behind in her forced slumber.

-.- the next day -.-

"Ng..." Kagome groaned as she woke up.

"You're finally awake," a familiar and gentle voice said.

She slowly turned her face to the side. She immediately recognized the black-haired woman standing next to the bed. "K-Kikyou onee-sama..."

Kikyou was wearing a plain white dress with long trumpet-shaped sleeves. Her hair was tied into a loose braid that rested on one of her shoulders. "How are you feeling?" she asked with a smile.

She was surprised when Kagome suddenly grabbed a part of her dress below her waist.

"P-please...onee-sama...please help me," she pleaded as she used all her might to sit up.

Kikyou quickly lent her a hand and helped her. "Kagome, what's wrong?" she asked worriedly and sat down on the mattress.

Kagome burst into tears. "They're going to erase my memory...they don't want me to remember...and they took it from me...the Shikon no Tama..." she sobbed haphazardly.

"Calm down Kagome. Who's going to"

"Mother and father!" she cut her sister off. "They're going to use the jewel's power to erase my memory!"

"But why?" Kikyou asked with a puzzled look.

The young princess lowered her gaze to her hands. "B-because...of him..."

Kikyou widened her eyes. "Y-you mean..."

"Sesshoumaru..." Kagome finished her sentence.

She was surprised to feel her elder sister's warm hand wiping away the tears on her cheeks and looked up at her.

"You silly Kagome...so that's why you protected him from Kururo's arrow..." said Kikyou. "Do you realize how shocked everyone was when you did that? Kururo hadn't slept for days because she realized she had nearly killed her sister with her own hands."

"But he was already injured and there was no way he could have dodged the arrow. How could she take advantage of that?" Kagome argued.

Kikyou opened her mouth to respond to this but was cut off as Kagome continued.

"It isn't Sesshoumaru's fault that my wings were torn off. He saved me when I was on the brink of death. And after that, he risked his life countless times to protect me when I was in danger. He even gave me the Shikon no Tama so I could wish for my wings and go home."

Kagome closed her eyes and made more tears roll down her cheeks. "Is it so wrong...wanting to be with the one I...love?"

Kikyou's eyes hardened. "But he's a dem" her voice faltered as she realized that Kagome wasn't listening anymore.

She sighed. "Don't think too much. Get some rest okay?" she said before standing up and walking away.

-.-

After closing the door behind her, Kikyou thought about Kagome's words.

_"Is it so wrong wanting to be the one I love?"_

Her expression saddened. _'No...it isn't wrong Kagome...'_ she replied inwardly as she traveled silently down the hall.

_'But do we have a choice...?'_

-.- later that night -.-

_'If nobody's going to help me...I'll do it myself!'_ Kagome gritted her teeth as she moved herself off of her bed.

On her bare feet and in her thin blue nightdress, she slipped into the hall.

After some silent twists and turns, she finally arrived at the study of the king and queen. She was more than relieved to realize that her parents' bedroom and their study were two separate spaces. Luckily, no light was coming out of the room and Kagome sneaked into the chamber without further thoughts.

It was pitch-black inside the study.

In her heart, Kagome prayed for a clue leading to the jewel's location. _'Please...let me find the Shikon no Tama...'_ she thought as she carefully walked deeper into the room.

As if responding to her pleads, several faint purplish rays of light started to come out of a small box at the end of the room.

_'There!'_ Kagome thought and hurried her way to the glowing box.

She opened the wooden lid and relief filled her heart when she saw the glowing marble.

Kagome reached out to take it but before she touched it, a voice surprised her.

"Who's there!?"

When she turned around, she saw the silhouette of a guard right outside the door she had forgotten to close.

Without hesitation, Kagome grabbed the jewel and ran towards the doorway.

She pushed the guard aside to the floor and ran into the hall.

"STOP!!!! GUARDS!!!" the same voice yelled from behind her

But Kagome didn't care and she ran away from the study as fast as she could, with her bare and sweaty feet on the cold marble floor.

-.-

"Kagome!! STOP!!!" a low voice commanded.

And finally, Kagome came to a stop.

Countless guards were standing at both sides of the hall and got her completely cornered.

Tthe king was the one who ordered her to stop. He and queen Moira were standing together with the guards in front of her.

In the hall, there fell a dead silence except for the heavy pants coming from the young princess.

"Kagome, what do you think you're doing??" Moira broke the silence.

Kagome narrowed her eyes. "I will not let anyone erase my memories!"

"This is ridiculous!!" Kronos scowled. "There's no way a demon like him would feel the same way for you. Wake up Kagome! And even if he does, I will never approve it!!"

"I don't care if he returns my feelings or not!" Kagome spat in reply. "I just want to see him again!"

Meanwhile, the rest of the princesses had arrived and they went to stand with their parents. They were all wearing long-sleeved nightdresses of different colors.

"Kagome, please don't do anything you'll regret!" Kikyou pleaded.

The king's face colored in fury. "I will never allow my daughter to be with a demon!! NEVER!!!" he roared.

"Please listen to your father Kagome. We only want what's best for you," Moira added.

But Kagome shook her head. "No...you don't understand...you'll never understand..."

She turned to look at Kikyou. "Kikyou onee-sama. I finally understand what you meant back then...you were sad because you weren't able to decide to whom you wanted to marry...then...why can't you understand how I'm feeling right now???"

Kikyou dropped her gaze to her feet as she knew there was no way she could stop or convince her younger sister anymore.

But Kronos had no intention of giving up and stepped forward. "Kagome, if you use that Shikon no Tama and go back to Earth to that demon's side, I swear I will send troops of soldiers to pursue you and that demon until you agree to come back. I will do it even if it takes my whole lifetime to separate you!!" he threatened.

Kagome's eyes hardened at this. After causing so much trouble to the demon lord, the last thing she wanted was to cause him even more endless trouble.

"Why? Why are you pushing me like that?!" she cried sadly.

Kagome looked down at the Shikon no Tama in her hands and then shifted her gaze back to her family as she tightened her grip on the jewel. "Even if I won't be seeing Sesshoumaru for the rest of my life..." she said with streaming tears on her cheeks. "I will NEVER let you erase my memories of him!!!"

She raised the jewel with both her hands in the air and threw it with all her might to the hard floor.

-- PLING --

As soon as the Shikon no Tama hit the floor, it snapped into two pieces. Each halve toppled to the side and came to a rest.

"Seize her!!!" the king's voice commanded.

The guards made their way to the young princess while two got hold of her upper arms. And the whole crowd began to move towards one end of the hall.

All did, except for one.

Kikyou watched with sad eyes how her dear sister was being carried away like a prisoner.

Her eyes dropped to the white marble floor where Kagome stood before.

The two pieces of the once round and perfect jewel lay forgotten behind.

"Kagome..." whispered her sad voice.

-.- several days later -.-

A couple of days have passed and Kikyou decided to pay her dear sister a visit.

From what she had heard, Kagome caught a cold and had been staying in bed for the past few days.

Because of the incident, the soon-to-be-bride became a bit distracted and the preparations for her wedding had been delayed. Kikyou was busy with keeping up the schedule but now she finally had some free time.

Nobody had spoken about the incident ever since it took place and she was glad about it.

-.-

She was merely one step away from Kagome's bedroom door when a maid suddenly came out of it.

"Oh, Kikyou-sama!" the maid in soft yellow greeted her surprised.

Kikyou frowned as she looked at what the maid was holding. "What's going on?" the princess in white asked, pointing at the chain of keys in one of her hands. And in her other hand, she was carrying a tray with untouched food.

"K-Kikyou-sama, it's eh..." she stammered as she closed the door behind her.

"Tell me the truth," Kikyou demanded, with narrowed eyes locking on the maid's terrified brown ones.

"I'm so sorry Kikyou-sama," she suddenly apologized with a deep bow. "We were ordered to hide this from you so you could concentrate on the preparations for your wedding. Kagome-sama...she has actually been locked up in her room ever since that incident."

Kikyou widened her eyes in shock. "W-what did you say?? Who ordered you to do that??"

"It was the king, your father, who gave us that order," the maid replied. "It was to prevent Kagome-sama from committing suicide...but..." her voice trailed off and her expression suddenly saddened.

"But what?" she asked.

"But Kagome-sama has refused to eat or drink ever since she got locked up...if this goes on...she will eventually die..." the maid confessed.

Kikyou remained as calm as possible as she heard this. "I'm going to see her," she decided aloud.

The girl hesitated. "But the king"

"Nobody will know about this, do I make myself clear?" the princess cut her off threateningly.

"Y-yes, Kikyou-sama," the maid bowed and slowly walked away.

Kikyou waited until the sound of the bumping keys became inaudible before turning to the bedroom door completely.

She took a deep breath and slowly turned the doorknob. With a soft squeak, she pushed the door open and entered.

And she couldn't believe what she saw.

What was once a cheerful bedroom filled with brown and blue, had now become an empty space with four white, plain walls.

At the end of the room laid a lonely sky-blue mattress with white pillows and blue covers on it.

Her eyes widened when she saw the person sleeping on it.

After closing the door behind her, Kikyou approached the bed while covering her mouth with her hand. "K-Kagome..." she gasped, barely recognizing her youngest sister.

"K-Kikyou...onee-sama..." her hoarse voice responded as her heavy eyelids slowly revealed her navy-blue orbs.

The princess fell to her knees next to the mattress as tears filled her eyes.

"D-don't cry..." she said with a weak smile. "To die with my memories of Sesshoumaru...I have no regrets."

"Kagome..." Kikyou whispered. _'You're so much stronger then I am...you defied our parents' order...you held onto your true feelings...and even now...you rather die than live without ever being able to see the one you love...' _

Her thoughts were cut off when she heard her sister's weak voice again.

"I just wish....I-I could see him...one...last...t-time..."

After she said those words, Kagome closed her eyes again.

Kikyou widened her eyes. "Kagome? Kagome wake up!!" She quickly lowered her ear to her face. _'Thank God...she's still breathing...'_ she thought relieved when she felt a soft breeze caress her face.

At the same time, the Royal family, followed by guards, stormed into the chamber.

"Kagome!!" Queen Moira cried and ran to Kagome's side. The rest followed her into the chamber.

Nobody, however, noticed Kikyou slipping out of the crowd and leaving the room.

-.-

Hastily, the eldest princess made her way to the castle's courtyard.

Once arrived, she looked around to make sure nobody followed and reached into her sleeve.

She bit her lower lip as she took out the two halves of the Shikon no Tama and looked at them. _'Kagome...I won't let you die...'_ After securing the broken jewel in her palm, she summoned her large white wings. _'I will definitely bring back the one who can cure your agony...'_ she decided determinedly and broke contact with the floor using her wings.

And the winged one disappeared into the sky.

* * *

Thought you might like a quick update after so many cliffhangers, so here it is! Hope you liked it. The coming update won't be coming as quick as this one since I've received some homework now. But still, please look forward to the next chapter okay? Thanks!!

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next chapter: Crumbling wall of pride**

-.-.-.-.-

Needless to say, the next chapter will be about Sesshoumaru. I've got several readers asking me what had happened to the arrow Kururo shot (the one Kagome caught for Sesshoumaru). I thought it would be nice to stop there (in the previous chapter) since I would suddenly have to change to Sesshoumaru's perspective to describe what happened after Kagome got shot (Kagome became unconscious so no way I could tell things from her perspective). Never thought it would create some frustrations, sorry!! But things are going to be explained in the next chapter, so don't worry.

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**  
**onee-sama: **(big) sister

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES TO REVIEWS:**

**Shiroi senshi: **Haha indeed, it won't be called a Sess/Kag pairing if they weren't meant to be together. Hmm you think the previous chapter was sad? How did you find this one? Thanks for reviewing :).

**Dragon of Sesshomaru: **-blinks- You can actually pause midair? That's really cool :)!! How did you like the update?

**Kirei Baka Kasumi:** Hahaha nope, have to honestly say that Kikyou's not going to die in this story. I think this chapter was sadder than the previous one, what do you think?

**INUGIRL:** Sorry for the cliffhanger. Hope you still like it though :). Thanks for reviewing!

**DarkAngelB: **Nice guess, she's indeed at home by the next chapter hehehe. Thanks for your review and good luck with your homework!!

**silverstargazing: **Hehehe, I'm glad you still liked it despite of the drama :). Sorry for leaving you at a cliffhanger again, but I've updated pretty soon right?

**Wake-Robin: **Haha you're very welcome :). I'm glad you liked it!

**trivia: **Thanks!!

**stoictimer: **Thank you very much!! The arrow hit Kagome's back but didn't go through it much to her relief (or it would kill Sesshoumaru as well). She didn't die as you can see and it's getting more dramatic with the minute hahaha. Don't worry, things will get better, I promise.

**areen: **Thank you :)! I'm glad you like it.

**Jirurianu: **Thanks thanks!! :)

**Angelic 0263: **Haha I will, don't worry. I'm happy to hear you loved it hihihi.

**Muki: **Thanks! All your questions will be answered as the story continues :).

**Kyia: **Thanks for telling me! I'll keep that in mind :).

**Why?What?Shutup:** -Kittymui widens her eyes- D-don't threaten me... -suddenly Kittymui's 3 faithful muses start to talk-  
Muse1: "That's not fair! We've been working so hard and yet our boss is getting threatened still!"  
Muse2: "You're absolutely right! You know what? Let's go on a strike!"  
Muse1,2&3: "Yeah! Let's do it!!"  
-three of them fold their arms together and sit down, sticking up their noses to the air-  
Kittymui: "Uh-oh..."

**ISpikedThePunch: **Thank you!! I'm so happy to hear you loved it in spite of the sadness :). Although I don't find myself THAT amazing, but still, thanks!!

**dragon of hope:** Here you go! Hope you'll like this one too :).

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Hehehe thought you would say that hahaha. Hey thanks, I'm glad you didn't find the cliffhangers annoying :). Sound effects? Oh that hahaha, well it's nothing...really...honestly I thought they were starting to be annoying because I use them so often.

**serenity2222:** Thanks!!

Posted: 19 September 2004  
Last Edited: 19 September 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	16. Crumbling wall of pride

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
-- capslocked words --: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Crumbling wall of pride**

::DREAM SEQUENCE::

Sesshoumaru opened his eyes and found himself in a small clearing of a forest below a dark sky without the moon or stars.

_'Where am I?'_ he thought fuzzily and looked around him.

Nobody was there.

But when the demon lord tried to move, he found himself incapable of doing that. At the same time, a shock of pain shot through the left side of his body.

When he looked carefully at his own body, he found an arrow at his left shoulder, pinning him against a tree behind him.

Then in a flash, the small clearing was suddenly filled with people.

A girl equipped with a bow was facing him at a distance and a group could be seen standing next to her. She had drawn an arrow and was pointing its head at him.

Her long brown tresses made a wave in the air as she let go of the string and fired her arrow.

-- FWISSHHH --

The sound of her arrow flying through the air echoed in Sesshoumaru's ears as he watched its rotating silver head coming at him with great speed.

He cursed inwardly, realizing that he was being completely powerless for the first time in his entire life. There was no way he could dodge the incoming arrow and both his arms were disobeying him, as if they were paralyzed.

As the demon lord occupied himself with his shameful fate, he did not notice that a girl had left the group and was running towards him.

-- TSJAK --

With his numb mind, which could lose consciousness any moment now, it took Sesshoumaru several seconds to realize what had happened.

He cast his eyes downwards and widened them when he saw locks of raven-black hair.

Kagome had clung to his chest and caught the silver arrow with her own body.

Sesshoumaru watched how she slowly looked up at him with her beautiful navy orbs that were becoming hazy.

He could feel her trembling against his chest. "K-Kagome...!" he gasped in shock.

But not long after that, the girl closed her eyes and let go of his haori.

"Kagome!!!" he cried as he watched her collapse to the grass near his feet.

His eyes darted towards the female archer, whom he recalled to be one of Kagome's siblings. He tried to growl but ended up panting. "H-how could you!?!"

The woman just stood there with wide eyes filled with shock.

The group beside her, however, quickly made their way to the injured girl at his feet. They started to panic, but one of the girls shushed them all and gathered Kagome in her arms. "We have to bring Kagome back home first!! Now get ready to leave immediately!" Sesshoumaru heard her say.

She summoned her white wings and ordered the rest to do so as well.

But Sesshoumaru didn't care about them all; his eyes were only fixed on the unconscious girl that was about to be taken away from him.

He used the last bit of his strength to raise his heavy arm and reached out to her.

Just when he thought he could touch her face, the girl who carried her rose to the air using her wings and disappeared into the black nothingness above him.

"NO-O-O-O!!!!!" he roared.

And everything became dark again.

::END DREAM SEQUENCE::

Sesshoumaru slowly opened his eyes.

"Yo, you're awake?" a familiar voice asked.

The demon lord scanned his surroundings and found himself sitting against the base of a tree near a burning campfire in a small clearing.

His eyes traveled to the person sitting next to the fire and narrowed as he recognized his half-sibling. "What are you doing here?" he groaned, emphasizing the 'you' word with annoyance.

"You better stay still until you've completely healed, you're still too weak to move you know," Inuyasha warned.

Sesshoumaru growled at the pain coming from his stomach and shoulder. Although Kikyou's purifying arrow got rid of Naraku's poison, the hole in his abdomen wasn't to be underestimated. "Where's that wench of yours??"

"Don't call her that!" Inuyasha snapped, throwing a small branch into the fire. "She's gone away to cool off I guess."

The demon lord slightly raised a brow at his hanyou brother.

"Don't give me that look!! It's your fault to begin with!! If you hadn't been so stupid to be pinned down like that, I wouldn't have to ask her to remove the arrow!" he spat.

Sesshoumaru's ears twitched. He would definitely have killed the hanyou for insulting him like that, had he added the last part of his sentence a little later.

Although not showing it, he was quite surprised to hear that. What was his moronic brother thinking?

"Don't get any stupid ideas in your head!" Inuyasha snapped. "I did it because of Kagome."

The demon lord became even more surprised. _'Kagome?' _

"She seemed kind of...sad...when she told me she left the castle," he explained. "...as if she didn't want to leave at all."

A moment of silence fell between the brothers as they both gazed into the calm flames.

"Why did she leave anyway? And where is she now?" Inuyasha finally asked.

But the demon lord didn't reply as he drifted into deep thoughts.

::FLASHBACK::

"Well...she...she left milord."

"WHAT!!!?" he cried.

Without hesitation, he jumped out of his bed.

He fell to his knees at first because of the pain coming from his abdomen, but he quickly forced himself to straight up again. "What happened?" he demanded with a low growl.

The green servant hesitated. "Milord...I don't know exactly...but I did saw Rin talking to the girl before she...disappeared."

Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes. "Get Rin," he ordered and sat down again on the edge of his king-size bed. "And get me my clothes and armor."

"Yes milord," Jaken nodded and excused himself of the room.

Shortly after that, the black-haired girl entered the chamber. "You called for me Sesshoumaru-sama?"

"Rin..." the demon lord began without turning to her. "What did you do?"

"M-me? Nothing," she replied quasi-innocently.

This time Sesshoumaru turned to look at her with a hint of red in his eyes.

Rin immediately felt weak at his icy glare and collapsed to her knees. "I-I just told her the truth. That everything's been a mess since she came...Sesshoumaru-sama has already been injured so many times because of her!" she confessed.

At the same time, Jaken arrived carrying the things Sesshoumaru requested.

The girl dared not to look up as the sound of the demon lord putting on his clothes and armor could be clearly heard in the silent room.

After shifting his swords behind his yellow sash, he turned and started walking towards the exit.

Just before he reached the open doorway, Rin's voice stopped him.

"Why?!" she cried. "I've been following Sesshoumaru-sama for 15 years now and I wasn't able to compete with a girl who had just entered your life a couple of weeks ago? Why!!??"

Saltiness filled the air and Sesshoumaru knew the girl had started to cry.

"I..." she sobbed. "I...I really lo"

Her sentence was cut off by the demon lord's low voice.

"Leave."

Without sparing her another glance, Sesshoumaru walked out of the room.

:: END FLASHBACK ::

What she did was wrong but...

No matter how angry he was at Rin, somehow, he could never stain his hands with her blood.

"Yo! I asked you something!!" his half-brother's voice rudely interrupted his thoughts. "Where is Kagome now??"

Sesshoumaru looked up at the sky. "She's home..." he responded dully.

Inuyasha widened his eyes. "What?! You mean...back to the moon??"

"Shut up Inuyasha. You're noisy," the demon lord growled irritated.

The hanyou stood up angrily and stomped his way to his half-brother.

"How could you let her go like that?! Weren't you supposed to protect her?!" he cried as he grabbed Sesshoumaru by the collar of his haori.

The demon lord scowled. "This Sesshoumaru protects no one," he replied coolly, denying the fact that he wasn't able to protect her because a mere arrow pinned him down.

"I've had it with you!!" Inuyasha growled and let go of him. "If you want to play cool, fine by me!! Just don't regret it!"

After he said that, he turned around and walked away, leaving Sesshoumaru behind.

-.-

Inuyasha stomped through the forest. _'Damn that Sesshoumaru! What was Kagome even thinking when she stayed with him?!'_ he thought to himself.

His inward complaining ended when he felt another presence.

An unknown yet calming scent filled his nose as he pondered about the identity of the approaching individual.

"Who's there?" he demanded vigilantly.

The sound of footsteps became gradually louder as a shadow appeared between the trees. It didn't stop walking and eventually came into the pale moonlight.

The end of her thick, loose braid of black hair billowed one last time on her chest as she came to a halt in front of Inuyasha.

The hanyou widened his eyes. But before he could say anything, the woman in white already beat him to it.

"I'm looking for Sesshoumaru, the demon lord of these lands, do you know where he is right now?" she asked.

Inuyasha couldn't believe his ears. It was the voice he never thought of having the chance to hear again. It was a voice similar to Kikyou's but filled with warmth and gentleness, just like in the past. "I-if you walk into this direction, you'll arrive at a small clearing with a campfire burning in the middle," he pointed at where he came from.

"Thank you," the woman smiled and passed him by.

_'This isn't a dream...that's really Kikyou...right?'_ Inuyasha wondered bewilderedly.

It is then that he decided to turn around and stop the woman. "Kikyou!" he called.

Much to his surprise and shock, the woman indeed halted her step and turned to him.

"Do I...know you?" she asked with a puzzled look on her face.

Inuyasha swallowed hard. "Y-you're...Kagome's eldest sister...right?"

The woman gave him a surprised look. "Y-yes...but how did you"

"Kagome told me about you...that you looked just like a person I know...the one who tried to kill her before," he explained hesitatingly.

-.-

Kikyou widened her eyes. _'The one who tried to kill Kagome...? A woman who looks just like me...?'_ she thought shocked.

But before she could say anything in response, the sound of a soaring arrow interrupted the conversation.

-- FWISSHHH --

She watched with shocked eyes how an arrow flew towards her with great speed.

But in a blink of an eye, the dog demon in red placed himself in front of her and slashed the arrow in two with his clawed hand.

"Kikyou!! Come out!!" she heard him growl.

_'Kikyou...?'_ she thought puzzled as she realized he wasn't talking to her.

A black-haired woman dressed in white and red came from behind a tree. "Step aside Inuyasha," she warned as she placed another arrow on her long wooden bow.

Kikyou's jaw almost dropped when she realized that the woman who stood in front of them resembled her like two drops of water.

"No Kikyou! Enough is enough!" the hanyou refused.

The archer scowled. "What has gotten into you Inuyasha? Can't you see that the woman behind you is just another cursed one like Kagome?! She's going to take you away from me!!"

"It is you who have been blinded by sorrow and wrath all this time. Ever since you've been revived, those were the only feelings residing in your body of earth and soil," Inuyasha reasoned. "It hurts to see you like this. That's why I'm not going to step aside this time Kikyou. I won't let you destroy the other part of your incomplete soul."

Both Kikyou's widened their eyes in surprise. But the one with the bow and arrow in her hands spoke first. "What are you saying?!" she snarled.

"I know it sounds ridiculous but please listen to me," he began. "The Kikyou I once knew was filled with kindness and love, but because of Naraku's evil scheme we ended up hating each other. After you sealed me with your arrow, you died filled with sorrow and regret. Ever since you were revived by that miko, you've never showed that kind and loving side of yours again."

Inuyasha took a short pause and continued. "That's why I believe it is possible what Kagome said before. The part of the kind soul you once had, have reincarnated and become Kagome's eldest sister. And the other part of your soul, the one filled with sorrow and regret, remained inside your ashes until you were suddenly brought back to this world. Until Naraku died, I could understand why you were filled with wrath and anger. But now that Naraku's dead, why can't you be like who you were before? Why??"

The expression on the archer's face changed to an awkward one. "Inuyasha...s-stop that nonsense at once...!"

In the meantime, the Kikyou from the moon pondered about the hanyou's story. _'Could it be true...? That my soul and hers were one before? Kikyou...and Inuyasha were love in with each other once...right?'_

The more she thought about it, the more things began to make sense. Why she wasn't able to choose whom to fall in love with. Why she was forced to marry the one she didn't love. And why the Kikyou on Earth couldn't love the one who loved her back.

_'It's our punishment...is this the only way for us to atone for our sins...?' _she thought sadly. _'But...why do we both have to suffer...?'_

And then she finally decided something. Without further thoughts, she stepped away from Inuyasha's protection and walked forward.

"What are you doing?" the hanyou asked surprised.

Kikyou saw that the woman in front of her had raised her arrow to point at her.

"Don't come any closer!!" she warned.

But Kikyou knew the woman was wavering as she noticed the uncertainty in her voice. She slowly raised her hand towards the arrow and pushed it aside together with the bow.

Without further thinking, she suddenly wrapped her arms around her and hugged her tight. Then, she turned her face to whisper in her ear.

"Release your wrath and sorrow...and live freely...I will be the one atoning for our sins..."

Kikyou had hoped her words would reach the woman. And she knew she had succeeded the moment she heard the clattering sound of the bow and arrow falling onto the grass.

-- CLATTER --

She slowly released the Kikyou from Earth from her embrace and took a small step backwards.

When she looked at her, she realized that the cold expression she had before had melted completely.

Two streams of tears could be seen on both her cheeks as she backed away from her.

Without a word, the woman turned around and ran into the woods.

"Kikyou!!" Inuyasha yelled and ran to the winged one's side. "What did you do?" he asked worriedly.

Kikyou only gave him a warm smile. "Go to her."

"B-but you" the hanyou argued.

"Trust me," she cut him off.

He hesitated for a moment but eventually returned a smile. "Thank you. I don't know what you did. But somehow I get the feeling I should say that. Please give Kagome my regards."

With that said, the dog demon dashed into the woods, into the direction where his Kikyou went.

Kikyou (from the moon) looked at the direction where the two disappeared and formed a sad smile on her face. _'Live Kikyou...live the life you wanted to...and be happy for the both of us...'_

And then she turned to walk into another direction. The one Inuyasha had pointed to before.

-.-

The light emitted by the burning campfire guided her way through the forest and eventually, Kikyou arrived at the small clearing.

And there he was.

The demon lord was leaning against a thick roots of an old tree and had his eyes closed.

"Sesshoumaru," she called out to him as she approached him.

At first she thought he was sleeping, but the frown on his face proved otherwise.

"Why are you here?" he asked coldly, without opening his eyes.

Kikyou's eyes slowly drifted to the fabric covering the demon lord's left shoulder that carried some dried bloodstains. "You haven't completely recovered yet, have you?"

There was a short silence before he responded. "If you came here just to tell me that...leave."

"It's Kagome..." she said with a serious expression on her face.

Upon hearing her name, the demon lord slowly opened his eyes. "What about her?" he said with a tone that couldn't sound more indifferent.

Kikyou scowled. "How can you act so coldly as if it doesn't concern you at all?!"

-.-

Sesshoumaru's ears twitched at the woman's angry outburst.

What's the point in concerning? The outcome won't change.

_'She's gone...and she won't be coming back...'_ he concluded inwardly.

But the winged one's next words made him snap back into reality again.

"I can't believe I couldn't even fulfill her last wish."

He turned to her fully. "What do you mean? Haven't you healed her after you took her away??" he asked with a frown.

The woman averted her gaze. "The visible ones were of course healed in a second...but Kagome's suffering because of the wounds in her heart...something we couldn't even heal with our powers." she spoke sadly.

But when she saw the bored expression on Sesshoumaru's face, hers reddened in fury. "I can't believe you're actually doubting my story!!"

Sesshoumaru chuckled. "You winged ones from the moon were the ones not keeping your word to begin with. How can you expect me to believe whatever you tell me? Even if it's about Kagome," he said while turning away.

"You're impossible!! You know what? You're totally unworthy of my sister's feelings towards you!!" she snapped angrily.

Although he didn't show it, the demon lord was quite surprised to hear this. But he still had his doubts.

"Then why didn't she use the Shikon no Tama to come back to me?"

Not long after he asked that, he saw her throw something to the grass in front of him.

Sesshoumaru slowly picked it up to have a closer look.

He widened his eyes when he realized what he was holding in his hand and quickly turned to Kikyou. "How?!!" he snarled, as he shifted his eyes from the broken marble in his hand to the woman.

To his surprise, two streams of tears could be seen on the winged one's cheeks.

"She wanted to be with you...but our father threatened to send countless armies after her if she did that. They even planned using the Shikon no Tama to erase her memory so that she would forget about you," she explained sadly. "That's why she chose to break it...in order to retain her memories of you...She couldn't choose to be with you knowing you both would be pursued forever."

For a moment, Sesshoumaru truly didn't know how to react to this and could only stare wide-eyed at the two halves of the jewel in his clawed hand.

And silence fell between the demon lord and the winged one.

-.-

"She's dying Sesshoumaru," Kikyou finally said after a short moment. "She's been locked up inside her chamber ever since and now she's refusing to eat or drink..."

She dried her tears with the back of her hand and scowled. "I came because I thought you were the only cure for her agony. Even if you don't have any feelings for her...can't you just fulfill her last with and go see her for the very last time?!" she argued.

When she received no response, her lips curled into an awkward smile. "But I guess I was wrong..." she chuckled wryly. "A proud demon lord like you would never allow himself to have a drip of compassion for such an insignificant girl. Let alone fulfilling her wish before she dies..."

With that said, Kikyou gritted her teeth in anger and turned to leave.

But not long after she took her first couple of steps, a low growl coming from behind her halted her.

"Do not...mock my feelings for Kagome..."

Kikyou turned around to the growl, only to find the demon lord grabbing the tree for support and pulling himself to a standing position.

His eyes were filled with anger as they locked themselves with her dark gray ones with determination.

"Take me to her."

* * *

Oehhh!! Things are getting really excited here!! Hope you have enjoyed reading this chapter because I had a very tough time writing it (writer's block). But here it is finally and I'm happy announce that the next chapter will be the FINAL one :). But it will take some time to be written since I'm having some deadlines next week. Plus I want to finish this story with a beautiful ending so I'm going to let my muses take their time :).

Lots of greets,  
Kittymui

**  
Next FINAL chapter: Words of the heart**

-.-.-.-.-

Dum-dum-dum-dum!! Probably the chapter you've all been waiting for...or not :P. The two of them are leaving for Celes...but will they arrive there in time? Will Sesshoumaru be able to pull back Kagome, who's standing at the open gate leading to the afterlife? Please look forward to the final chapter!!

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES TO REVIEWS:**

**Wake-Robin: **Hehehe thanks for reviewing! I guess the only thing you can do is wait...and read :).

**Rhexi: **Thanks! Don't worry about that, I don't mind at all :). I'm glad you're back and still reading my story!

**Angelic 0263: **Thanks!! I'm glad you liked it!! Yup, just wait and find out :).

**serenity2222: **Hehehe sorry for the continuous cliffhangers but I guess that's my way of signaling the end of the story :), please forgive me. Why her father is so cold? Well, he doesn't know Sesshoumaru in person and had only heard from Kikyou about it. So hence the prejudices.

**Jirurianu: **Hahaha, just one chapter and everyone started to call him evil. Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad to hear you liked it!

**anime-lavuh: **Yup Kagome is dying, there's no denying that. I hope Sesshoumaru will arrive on time too...euhh what am I saying? I'm the one to decide whether he would make it or not haha...never mind...

**Dorie:** Thank you!

**Kirei Baka Kasumi: **Thanks for telling me!! I'll try to post the final chapter as soon as I have time!

**rubychik09: **Haha don't worry, here's another update :). Hope you liked it as well! Hahaha thanks for the hints, is this the outcome you've been waiting for?

**aznchicki: **Hahaha thank you very much!! I'll update as soon as possible!

**Dove of Night:** Am I happy to hear that :)! Thank you very much for telling me, it's very encouraging indeed!

**Kyia Star: **Thanks! How did you like the meeting I arranged between the two Kikyou's? Hope it wasn't too euhm...idealistic?? And thanks for telling me about the 'Kururo having holy powers' issue, if I didn't explain it in this chapter, it would become a small mystery.

**Muki: **Oh my, I have to be proud for making my readers cry? Actually I feel guilty instead hehehe. But anyway, thanks for reviewing! I'll try to update asap.

**INUGIRL: **I'm trying! I'm trying!! I'm really doing my best!! -glares at muses-

**mushy moo moo:** Hahaha well I'm not afraid because I will always finish stories I have started. I'm glad you like my story so far :).

**Darkmoonswolf20022:** Thanks thanks! I'll update as soon as I can!

**DarkAngelB: **Well, they do have their reasons for being so over-protective. Their daughter has lost her wings and they blame the demon lord for it. Plus, so far they haven't met him in person, they only heard things from Kikyou about he being very proud and cold. Well, you're intuition was right! Kikyou did run into her other self :). But things were a little bit different than you had described in your review, I hope you liked the way I ended their meeting hehehe. And thank you very much for such a nice long review!!

**Guardian-of-the-night:** I must thank you for reviewing another chapter of mine hihihi. I'm happy to hear that my story makes you think that way. How did you test go? I hope it went well :).

**ISpikedThePunch:** -bows deeply- Thank you so much!! It is very encouraging! I'm happy to know that you like my story so far! I'll try to update as soon as possible!

**stoictimer:** Hahaha thanks!! I'm glad you liked it!!

**Shiroi senshi: **Yeah I totally agree but I also believe that he still have his reasons for being so over-protective :) (crap...I was the one making him that way haha). Thanks for reviewing!!

**Shadow-Demon14:** I'm glad to hear that!! Thank you!!

**Mistress Koishii:** Thanks!! I'm glad you liked the chapter and understood the king and queen's selfish acts :)!! Hope you liked this one too!!

**Why?What?Shutup: **Hehehe this one's a huge cliffie too, sorry about that!! Look forward to the next chapter ne?

**Jupiter's Light: **Thanks I will!!

**dragon of hope: **Keep waiting because there will be more :). No really, thanks for your review!!

**CryingDeath: **Thanks for telling me! I will continue to write, will you continue to read? -looks sheepishly- and review? Hehehe :).

**trivia:** So short, yet so strong and encouraging! Thanks for your review :)!

Posted: 26 September 2004  
Last Edited: 26 September 2004  
Spelling check: YES


	17. Words of the heart

**DISCLAIMER:** As always, I don't own the original story of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the characters and I don't own the Chinese fairytale that I'm basing this story on. But as far as I'm concerned I do own the idea of mixing these two things together :).

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**:  
I'm sorry that it took me so long to update. But I've had a huge writer's block for the past several days. I was stressing like hell because some bothersome group members didn't get their part of the project done in time. Gosh, how I hate people who have no sense of responsibility...

Anyway, sorry for bothering you with my complaining :). Well, here it is...the FINAL chapter of this short fairytale, I hope you will like the ending I've given this story. I told you before that I based this story on a Chinese fairytale. You might be wondering what the original ending is...so....I will tell you all about it after you've finished this story okay? Have fun reading!!

_'...Italic...'_: thoughts  
"...": spoken words  
-.-.-.-.-: time gap  
-- capslocked words --: noises

* * *

**TORN WINGS**  
  
-by Kittymui-  
  
**Words of the heart**

**Previously:  
**With that said, Kikyou gritted her teeth in anger and turned to leave.

But not long after she took her first couple of steps, a low growl coming from behind her halted her.

"Do not...mock my feelings for Kagome..."

Kikyou turned around to the growl, only to find the demon lord grabbing the tree for support and pulling himself to a standing position.

His eyes were filled with anger as they locked themselves with her dark gray ones with determination.

"Take me to her."

-.-.-.-

By the time they arrived at the moon, it was already afternoon.

Though not showing it, Sesshoumaru was quite astonished by the landscape that totally differed from the one he's been ruling over all these years. The surface of the planet was pale and barren and filled with craters of all sizes. The demon lord noticed something else as well.

There was no water, just like Kagome told him. Not a single drip.

"How much longer will it take for you to get us to your kingdom?" he asked Kikyou who flew above him.

A faint white barrier could be seen around him and the winged one, which allowed him to travel through the skies with her without being carried.

"We'll be there soon..." she replied as she flapped her large white wings several times to keep their altitude.

_'Soon huh...?'_ the demon lord thought annoyed.

The sight of the endless empty landscapes had started to bore him and it only made him think about Kagome.

Yes, he was truly worried about her. Right now, all he could think about was to reach her before it's too late.

There were so many things he wanted to say to her. So many words he had kept hidden inside.

During their journey to the moon he had scolded himself countless times for not being honest to her when he still had the chance. Why didn't he tell her his feelings before she was taken away?

Suddenly, it reminded him of the silver arrow that she had caught for him with her own body...the one that sent her into unconsciousness.

There was something that had occupied his mind for a while now and before he knew it, he had already blurted out the question.

"How is it possible that a mere silver arrow could split an arrow of a powerful priestess?" he asked. "Is it related to the reason why Kagome had placed herself in front of me to protect me from it?"

No reply was given at first, but then the winged one finally parted her lips to speak.

"Yes, Kururo told me about her short fight with that priestess," she began. "The silver bow and arrows she was carrying has been passed down for many generations now. I heard our great ancestors forged them a long time ago. They possessed holy powers that exceeds those of that priestess greatly."

"Why wasn't it passed down to Kagome?" Sesshoumaru asked puzzled.

Kikyou shook her head. "Kagome didn't realize her purifying powers until recently. But even if she did, she still wouldn't be given the silver archery equipment. If her powers were to add up to those in the silver arrows, she would probably be able to purify everything, and I mean everything that the tip of the arrow touches."

"That's why they were given to my younger sister Kururo, who only has the fighting spirit inherited from my father," she finished.

The demon lord smirked. "So the priestess was lucky..."

Kikyou nodded. "If Kagome was the one releasing that arrow, she wouldn't be able to leave with just a scratched shoulder," she agreed and looked down at him with a serious expression. "But still, the holy powers that resides in the bow and arrows mustn't be underestimated. That priestess was able to withstand a scratch because of her own powers. But if it were to hit a youkai lord straight on, like you back then...you would become completely purified if not severely injured by the holy power."

Sesshoumaru took out the broken Shikon no Tama from his sleeve and looked at it. _'So that's why you wanted to save me so badly from that arrow...'_ he thought to himself. _'...Kagome...'_

His thoughts were interrupted when the winged one suddenly cried.

"Look!"

When Sesshoumaru followed her line of vision he realized that they were approaching a huge wide crater.

He narrowed his eyes and saw the kingdom that was built on the flat valley at the center of the crater.

It didn't take minutes before they passed the border of the crater and soared above the city.

_'So this is Celes...'_ he thought as he gazed upon the city.

Of the entire planet, this was the only place that had some life in it. The demon lord had certainly not expected something to grow on such a barren planet but some unfamiliar tiny flowers with green stems and white petals that grew here and there proved his thoughts otherwise.

The houses were pale and all of them had flat roofs. Everything was just as dull as the planet itself and the only building that seemed to stand out was the large gray castle that stood at the center of them all.

The expression on Sesshoumaru's face became serious as he locked his eyes on the closed gates of the castle.

He realized that the winged one had slowed down her pace and immediately looked up to her. "There is no time. Take me to her immediately," he ordered as he pulled out Toukijin.

"All right," she nodded and retracted her wings to dive downwards to the courtyard.

"Stop!! Who goes there!!" yelled the two guards at the main gate.

But Kikyou paid them no attention. "Sesshoumaru, now!!" she cried.

In a blink of an eye, Sesshoumaru made a slashing movement with his sword at the large wooden gate they were approaching.

-- CRRRRAAACCKKKKK --

The gates immediately fell apart and the two soared pass the guards into the courtyard of the castle.

Shortly after that, they found themselves flying through the halls of the great keep. Fortunately for them, the halls were wide and tall, which allowed them to fly over the heads of the guards who tried to stop them.

After flying up some stairs and making several turns, they've finally arrived at the doors leading to Kagome's room.

Kikyou discharged the white barrier and retracted her wings the moment they made contact with the stone floor.

She ran to the doors but realized they were locked. "Chikusho!! How could they lock her up again in her condition!?!" she cursed as she pulled at the doorknob.

"Step aside," the demon lord spoke as he readied Toukijin once again.

The winged one did as she was told and watched how Sesshoumaru slashed at the pair of doors without hesitation.

-- CRRAACKKK-- WHAAMMM--

She slightly cringed at the loud impact when the large chunks of wood made contact with the stone floor.

The sound of the demon lord sheathing his sword filled the silent atmosphere and the two of them entered the chamber.

-.-

Sesshoumaru didn't hesitate for one second and ran towards the mattress on the floor at the end of the empty room.

He widened his eyes as he slowly came to a stop next to the person lying on it.

There she was, the girl he wanted to see so badly. Her beautiful raven tresses framed her pale and meager face. She was dressed in a thin azure colored garment with long sleeves of which the lower half was covered by a white blanket. The small-unbuttoned neckline revealed her collarbone, which had become more visible than before.

No words could describe the tormenting sensation he felt seeing her like that.

He went down to his knees. "Kagome..." he whispered softly as she slipped his arms beneath her shoulders.

Carefully, he lifted her up and pulled her close to his chest. He took her hand with his free one and realized it was cold. "Kagome...please open your eyes..." he whispered again with a tone of hurt in his voice.

For a moment, he thought it was already too late and he had lost her forever.

But hope filled his heart when he felt her heartbeat and heard her soft breathing.

It was weak and faint but still a sign of life.

Sesshoumaru slowly laid her back on the mattress and stood up again.

_'I won't let you die...'_ he decided determinedly and pulled Tenseiga out of its sheath. _'I want to see your eyes again...'_

At that moment, a mass of people stormed into the chamber. "STOP!!!!!" a low and stern voice cried.

The demon lord eyed the crowd viciously that dared to stop him.

The group consisted of mainly guards, but there were a few that stood out.

There was an unfamiliar man standing in front of everyone. He had short black hair and navy blue eyes. He was wearing armor around his torso and limbs and a long sheathed sword could be seen hanging at his side. His long red cape collided softly against his iron back as he stopped after entering halfway the chamber.

And next to him stood a woman with beautiful long brown curly hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a grand white dress with long, gold-colored and trumpet-shaped sleeves. She was standing protectively in front of several younger women whose faces Sesshoumaru could clearly remember.

They were Kagome's sisters.

When Sesshoumaru saw them moving closer to him and Kagome, his other clawed hand drifted to Toukijin's hilt. If they continued their steps, they would surely get a taste of his sword.

But luckily for them, Kagome eldest sister suddenly placed herself in between the two parties with her arms spread out and her face to the crowd.

"Kikyou! What are you doing!?" It was the woman with long brown locks who spoke.

"Sesshoumaru! Do what you have to do!!" Kikyou cried without turning to the demon lord.

Hearing this, Sesshoumaru shifted his attention back to the dying girl in front of him.

He narrowed his eyes when several familiar hideous creatures appeared around Kagome's body. Their skins were white as always and they big eyes still looked as though they could fall out their meager faces any minute.

The demon lord scowled. _'I won't let you take her!!'_ he thought as he bared his fangs and raised the healing sword to the air.

Without further thoughts, he slashed down at the creatures and eliminated every single one of them.

As he sheathed Tenseiga, Sesshoumaru waited patiently for some reaction.

To his relief, some healthy color had began to return to the girl's pale face again and he knelt down to her again.

He gently lifted her to his chest and held her close to him. "I'm here Kagome...don't worry...everything's going to be okay from now on..." he said to her with a gentle voice, not sure whether she had heard him.

-.-

"Step aside Kikyou!!" Kronos ordered his eldest daughter.

"No I won't!" she spat in reply. "I've been obedient all this time, but now I won't listen to you anymore! I will not step aside...for the sake of Kagome's future!!"

"That demon will only destroy Kagome's future!" the king insisted angrily and drew his sword. "Now move!"

Then, something totally unexpected happened.

The queen suddenly ran to Kikyou's side and turned around to face the rest.

To the king's shock, she fell down to her knees and looked at him with tears in her eyes.

"M-Moira!! What do you think you're doing?!" he asked dumbfounded.

"Please Kronos...stop this madness...!" she sobbed.

His eyes widened when the rest of his daughters ran to her side as well.

"Are you all going to turn against me just because of that demon lord?!" he cried furiously.

Kikyou and the rest of the princesses knelt down to the floor together with their mother.

The queen clutched her heart with her hand and turned to the king. "When you told me that it was for Kagome's own good...I believed you, despite the fact it was obvious that she was unhappy. Even when she destroyed our chance to erase her memories, I still tried to believe that our decision wasn't wrong."

"But..." she continued as sadness was written all over her teary face. "...but d-did you know how I felt when I found out our Kagome was dying? I felt like my heart was torn into pieces...I thought I was going to lose one of my precious daughters..."

"And then we locked her up in her chamber and did everything to prevent her from committing suicide...yet it only pushed her more towards her death." Moira stole a short glance at the demon lord, who was holding her daughter close to him and turned back to Kronos again. "Don't you see?? That demon lord we hated so much has come all the way here despite our disagreements to save our daughter from the brink of death!"

"Nonsense!!" the king spat.

"If you insist on being stubborn, I will have no other choice but to stand up against you!" the queen decided. "I will not let your foolishness kill our daughter!"

Kikyou nodded in agreement. "Please father..."

" I will not let my daughter be taken away from me by some demon!!" Kronos cut her off with a face colored in fury.

-.-

Sesshoumaru's eyes flashed red after hearing the entire conversation. _'So that's the king...that's Kagome's father...'_ he concluded inwardly.

Carefully, he gathered Kagome up in his arms and lifted her from the mattress as he stood up.

"Hold it right there!! Where do you think you're taking my daughter!!" the king's voice cried.

But the demon lord ignored him and started walking towards the crowd with Kagome sleeping in his embrace.

The queen and the rest of her daughters had surprised looks on their faces as they automatically moved aside to create a path for him.

But he realized that the king and the guards weren't making way for him and a scowl appeared on his face. "Doke," he said with a low growl.

But the king raised his sword in the air and roared. "I rather kill my daughter myself than let you take her away!!" And he swung his sword at them.

-- CLASH --

In mere seconds, Sesshoumaru had pulled out Tenseiga and blocked the king's sword while holding Kagome (in "standing" position) close to him with his other arm.

He quickly looked at the girl in his arms to make sure she was unharmed. His blood boiled as he realized that she could've gotten hurt or fallen to the floor, had he reacted a bit slower. An extremely displeased expression could be seen on his face as he shifted his eyes back to the king and he growled menacingly. "I will not allow anyone to hurt Kagome...and I will kill anybody who tries to. You...are no exception."

"No!! Please spare his life!!" the queen's voice begged from behind him. "He's only blinded by his pride...please don't kill him!!"

The scowl on the demon lord's features remained. "Dattara..." he said as his eyes turned red.

He bared his fangs as he used all of his demon strength to push away the king's sword.

After successfully pushing him away, he swung his sword and sent several large blue blades of light towards him and guards.

The king and soldiers were caught off guard by Sesshoumaru's sudden attack and they bodies flung against the walls left and right of the open doorway.

-- WHAAMMMM --

And then, all became silent again as the dust started to settle.

After making sure that every single one of them couldn't cause him any more trouble, Sesshoumaru turned around to Kagome's mother. Not surprisingly, she and the rest of the princesses had shocked expressions on their faces.

He showed them Tenseiga. "This sword...cannot kill..." he said to them before putting it back into its sheath.

He could clearly see them relax after hearing that and he turned to look at Kikyou. "Take us back."

"But I..." her voice trailed off as her eyes hardened. She wanted to say that she had already used up most of her strength when she brought him here. There was no way she could bring him and Kagome back on her own.

"Hmpf," Sesshoumaru responded disappointed. He lifted the sleeping Kagome up in his arms again and turned around to the exit. He would find a way to go back no matter what, even if the winged ones refused to aid him.

But he was halted when he was just about to reach the doorway.

"I will take you back."

When he looked over his shoulder, he realized it that the queen was standing on her feet again and that she was the one who spoke.

"We will help!" the rest of the princesses decided altogether as they stood up.

-.-.-.-.-

Sesshoumaru was staring out of the window with a blanc expression on his face.

Although it all just happened within two days, he felt as though it was weeks ago that he had last looked at the moon from this perspective. The pale moon was crescent-shaped, just like it was a month ago, and always will be in the months after that.

But something was different this time.

So the demon lord thought as he turned to look at girl who was sleeping on his king-size bed.

:: FLASHBACK ::

The blue-gray color of the sky indicated that it was already evening when they landed in a small clearing of a forest.

The queen and her daughters discharged the large white barrier around them and turned to the demon lord without retracting their feathery white wings.

An awkward silence fell between the winged ones and the dog demon, but it was soon broken when one of the younger princesses suddenly blurted out a question.

"Mother, will Kagome be okay...?"

The queen hesitated a moment before walking forward to Sesshoumaru.

Her eyes dropped to the sleeping Kagome in his arms as she stopped in front of them. "Please..." she said softly as tears welled up in her blue eyes. She reached out her hand and caressed her daughter's cheek "Take care of her for me..."

She lifted her gaze up to Sesshoumaru and granted him a warm smile. "I don't know you well...but I know somehow that you will even if I don't ask you to..." she said, retracting her hand.

The demon lord didn't respond to this. Deep down inside, he couldn't help but think about the bothersome king, who would probably send troops of soldiers to his lands from now on. Maybe he should have used Toukijin instead of Tenseiga back then. But as he dropped his eyes to the sleeping girl in his arms, he realized he could never do anything to cause her any more sadness.

His eyes traveled back up to the queen.

As if she knew what he was thinking, the next thing she said had surprised him greatly.

"Don't worry about the king. I'm sure you have smacked some sense into him when you spared his life," she said awkwardly as she created more distance between them by stepping backwards.

"I hope you will permit us to visit her from time to time when we're in need of water again..." she said hesitatingly.

Sesshoumaru's eyes softened, but he didn't reply. He was just someone of little words and being verbally expressive towards strangers was just not in his nature after all.

Luckily, the queen knew what he wanted to say and smiled again. "Thank you...and farewell..."

After she said goodbye, she flapped her large white wings and rose up to the air above the demon lord.

The rest of the princesses followed their mother's example except for one.

Sesshoumaru realized it was Kikyou who remained and saw her looking at the girl in his arms. He saw the sadness in her eyes.

Suddenly he decided something and lowered the arm that was supporting Kagome's legs. After he secured her against his chest with his other arm around her shoulders he reached into his long sleeve with his free hand.

Without saying anything, he took out something and threw it towards the winged one.

He saw her widen her eyes when she looked at the object in her hand. Tears were filling her eyes when she smiled at him. "Arigatou..." she said gratefully.

Shortly after that, Sesshoumaru watched her fly up to the air and wave at him before disappearing into the evening sky.

Without giving it any further thoughts, he lifted Kagome up into his arms again and turned to leave.

:: END FLASHBACK ::

Sesshoumaru walked soundlessly towards the bed and looked down at the sleeping girl.

She was sleeping on her side with her back to him.

Her peaceful breathing somehow put the demon lord at ease in a way he was unable to verbalize.

He moved to sit down on the chair next to the bed while his eyes slowly drifted to the girl's back.

And the demon lord widened his eyes.

The thin blue fabric was shielding most parts, but there was no mistaking it.

_'The scars on her back...are gone...!'_ he realized shocked.

Just when he started to think about the faint chain marks on her wrists, the girl suddenly turned in her sleep to lay on her other side.

Sesshoumaru got up from the chair and slowly walked closer to the side of the bed.

He sat down on the edge and took one of Kagome's hands in his.

_'The chain marks...have also disappeared...'_ he realized.

An unexplainable relief filled his heart at this realization and his eyes softened as they locked on the girl's sleeping face in the calm candlelight. _'Kagome...you've allowed me to heal you...'_

-.-

"Uhn..." Kagome groaned softly as she slowly opened her eyes.

_'W-where am I...?'_ she thought half-sleepy as her vision began to sharpen.

Her eyes immediately widened when she realized where she was. _'Eh...?!'_

She recognized Sesshoumaru's chamber and she quickly sat up. _'I-I'm back...? B-but how...? W-why...?'_ she thought stupefied and surprised.

Even more surprised was the former winged one when she cast her eyes sideward and realized someone was sitting on the chair next to the bed.

_'Se-Sesshoumaru...!'_ she gasped inwardly upon seeing the silver-haired dog demon.

His eyes were shut and he seemed to be sleeping with his head slightly tilted forward.

Slowly and silently, Kagome crawled to the edge of the mattress. Her lips curled up into a small smile when she moved her face closer to the demon lord. _'I'm not dreaming...am I...?'_ she wondered in herself.

_'Sesshoumaru...I missed you...so much...'_ she thought as she reached out a hand to touch his face.

But before she actually managed to touch him, his eyes suddenly flashed open, revealing two surprised gold-amber orbs.

Kagome immediately cringed of shock and retracted her hand as if it touched boiling water. "G-gomen nasai!!" she apologized with wide eyes and dropped her eyes to the bed.

The sound of the demon lord getting up from the chair could be heard and she squeezed her eyes shut out of reflex. _'Stupid Kagome...look what you've done again...!' _ she scolded herself inwardly.

She gasped and held in her breath when she suddenly felt two strong arms wrap around her body. The two arms lifted her up to a kneeling position on the bed and pulled her to lean onto a warm chest.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself within the protective embrace of the demon lord. "S-Sesshoumaru...sama...?" she stammered, not really sure whether or not she should drop the honorific suffix.

"Just the name will do..." was his short response as he pulled her closer to him.

Kagome's eyes softened and she began to relax in his arms. "Sesshoumaru..."

The demon lord placed his chin on her shoulder. "Do not ever leave me...again..." he whispered to her.

Kagome clasped the fabric of Sesshoumaru's garment and pulled away a little to look at his face.

And she knew he said those words from the bottom of his heart as she saw the honesty written on his face.

Tears filled her eyes when she realized he wouldn't send her away again. "Sesshoumaru...I...I'm sorry for making you worry..." she sobbed. "I just"

Her voice trailed off when Sesshoumaru suddenly moved one of his clawed hands from her back to the small gap between them and held up something for her to see.

Kagome looked at what was resting at the center of his palm and widened her eyes.

It was half of the Shikon no Tama.

The demon lord granted her his very first genuine smile. "I gave the other half to your eldest sister..."

Kagome shifted her eyes to him and back to the half piece of jewelry and carefully took it from his hand. _'Kikyou onee-sama...it was you who helped me...wasn't it?' _ she thought as she looked at the broken marble. _'I-I'll never forget about you...'_

Several warm fingertips on her chin made her snap back into reality and gently forced her to look into a pair of beautiful gold-amber eyes again.

_'Eh...?'_ She was bewildered when she thought she saw an emotion in Sesshoumaru's eyes she had never expected to see.

But before she had started to ponder about it, her thoughts were already proven right by what happened next.

The demon lord lowered his face to hers and she slowly closed her eyes in response.

And within seconds, she could feel his soft warm lips placed upon hers.

Kagome secured the broken jewel in her hand and clasped Sesshoumaru's garment as she kissed him back.

There was no mistaking it.

It was love.

::--OWARI/--::

* * *

Pfew...almost took me forever to type this ending scene. I just sat in front of my computer and thought hours about how to end this story with a kiss (it's their first after all haha so I had to make it special).

And now for the original Chinese Fairytale. The overall plot was the same except for some tiny details:

The man was just a farmer and the girl from the moon was very good in sewing. The girl was indeed the seventh daughter of the king of the moon and one day she and her 6 sisters went to Earth to bathe. But she stayed on Earth because she fell in love with the farmer and not because she couldn't go back to the moon. Eventually they got married and had children together (if I'm not mistaking it was a son and a daughter). Unfortunately the king eventually found out about their relationship and separated the two by taking back his daughter to the moon.  
The man loved his wife very much and (skipping some details here) with some aid he was able to go up to the moon. So he went after his wife with their children, hoping to persuade the king to give him back his wife with their pleading. And ultimately, the king was moved by this and allowed his daughter to go to Earth once a year to see her husband and children.

And nowadays, whenever that day comes, people of our culture would go to a certain temple dedicated to the seventh princess to pray for fortune in love or something like that. This is because she was lucky enough to see her husband and children once a year. Well, not very lucky at first glance but keep in mind that at first, she and her love weren't allowed to see each other at all so compared to that, she was really lucky.

-.-.-.-.-

**Vocabulary:**

**Toukijin:** One of the two swords that Sesshoumaru carries with him. It's made of the fangs of a youkai that could break Inuyasha's fang (Tetsusaiga) in two  
**Tenseiga: **The other sword that Sesshoumaru carries with him. It was given to him by his father. It's a sword that can heal and bring the dead back to life  
**doke: **slang of the verb 'Dokeru' which means 'to remove' but here in this context it means 'move out of the way'  
**dattara:** it means 'if that is so...' but can also be translated as 'so?'  
**arigatou:** thank you  
**gomen nasai: **I'm (so) sorry  
**-sama:** a honorific suffix, people put this after someone's name whom they respect very much  
**onee-sama:** (big) sister  
**owari:** the end  
**chikusho: **damn it

-.-.-.-.-

This concludes my 4th story. I really really hope you liked this story till the end because I had fun writing it, I really have :). All those reviews from you guys really helped me a lot with writing this story. They're really encouraging, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!

Some of you are probably curious about the story next that I'm going to post. Yes, I've been really looking forward to writing the next story. It will be my first non Sess/Kag and Inu/Kag story so I'm really excited about it. You got that right, I'll be trying a whole new pairing for the very first time. To give you a small hint, it's one of the members of the Shichinintai :).

The story is going to be called **"A tale from the past"** and it will be an AU fairytale. Here's a short summary of the story:

"A tragic dream haunted him since his childhood. It was also the same dream that caused his interest in the Sengoku Jidai. One day he found a book dating back to the Sengoku Jidai when the dog demons ruled over the Western Lands. He decided to take the book back to his apartment and the moment he flipped over the first page, the tale from the past began"

I really hope to see all, if not most, of you back again with my next story that will be posted in December (like always I'll be taking a break again after exhausting myself for about 4 months).

Farewell and till we meet again!!

Yours,

Kittymui

-.-.-.-.-

**REPLIES TO REVIEWS:**

**Madam Sorceress: **Hehe indeed, it was quite hard for me to make him admit his feelings for Kagome since I also wanted to have him stay in character. But I'm glad you liked the way I did it :). Thanks for your review!

**Jupiter's Light:** Thank you! I hope you liked the ending as well :).

**demonswty: **A God? Why? Haha anyway thanks for reviewing!

**aznchicki:** Hahaha, well he didn't allow it after all, but he can't forbid it anymore, can he?

**Dark Angel Kagome: **I'm so happy to hear that you love my story so much :). Thanks!!

**Shiroi senshi: **Thank you very much :). Hope you liked the ending too!

**rubychik09:** Hahaha I'm glad you're happy! Thanks for reviewing!

**Why?What?Shutup:** Yeah, eventually he has to admit it or I would be forced to drag out the story unnecessarily hehehe.

**Dove of Night: **-gulp- eh yeah...I agree with you being encouraging indeed hehehe...p-please put away the sword...-looks at you with puppy eyes- you do like the ending I wrote for this story...r-right?

**Kyia Star: **I'm glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing! Be hearing from you again ne? And keep me updated whenever you update :)!

**Dragon of Sesshomaru: **Thanks! Yeah...life's not fair huh? Just kidding :)! Oooh...pocky????? Give it to me...give it to me!!! Aww come on!! I updated didn't I??

**Guardian-of-the-night: **Glad you loved it :)! I hope you're satisfied with the length of this final chapter hehehe. Thanks for looking forward to my next story!

**INUGIRL:** Thanks!! Hope it was worth the wait!!

**Kirei Baka Kasumi: **Thank you!! I have to admit that I thought about giving the story its original ending just like the Chinese Fairytale, but then again...a lot of readers wouldn't like it if Sesshoumaru and Kagome were only allowed to see each other once a year...right? So ultimately I decided to give it a happy ending :).

**Muki:** Hahaha I'm not proud, but still surprised that my chapters could actually make my readers cry. Thanks for your review :). I hope you liked the ending!

**ISpikedThePunch:** Thank you very much!! I hope you liked this final chapter as well!!

**black dragon: **Yup don't worry, things will always be okay eventually :). I'm happy to hear you love my story, thanks!!

**serenity2222: **You're very welcome!! Thanks for reviewing!!

**trivia:** Another long chapter for you :), was it nice as well? Thanks for telling me that this story is one of your favorite, it's so encouraging to hear that :).

**Wake-Robin: **Hahaha yeah I totally agree. I'm glad you liked it, because I also had fun writing it :). Thanks for reviewing!

**DarkAngelB: **Another nice long review from you, thanks! Hmm a human body would be impossible since she was cremated when she died, but now she won't be haunted by the wrath of her past and that's a good thing no? Ewww....maggots? -shivers- I hate them...they're so...hmm never mind...don't want to talk about it hahaha. Anyway I really hope you liked this final chapter :) although it may not be what you've expected hihihi.

**stoictimer: **-bows deeply- Thank you so much! I'm happy to hear you enjoyed it so far! Please tell me what you think about the ending okay? Thanks!!

**darkness-of-the-night: **Hehehe sorry for the late update...hope it was worth the wait. I wanted to update sooner but I think it would turn out bad if I rushed it no? I hope it turned out well though hehehe.

**Inukamisashi: **Arigatou gozaimasu!!! I'm so glad you liked it!! I hope you liked the way I ended this story as well :). Don't worry for not reviewing the previous chapters, just as long as you didn't forget about this story...I'll be happy :).

**Angelic 0263: **Hope it was worth the wait!! Thank you for reviewing!!

**Hanyoukai:** Thank you :), I'm glad you liked it!

**demoness of cosmos: **I've updated (finally) :).

**anime-lavuh: **Hahaha, I did it didn't I? I've let him arrive on time :)! Hmm what would happen to Kikyou on Earth? I haven't really thought about it...I guess live happily ever after with Inuyasha? Thanks for your review!!

Posted: 5 October 2004  
Last Edited: 5 October 2004  
Spelling check: YES


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